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It’s time to ‘Fight Back’ June 22-23

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Fans attending Music Fights Back range in age from 5 to over 70. Everyone is sure to have a memorable time rockin’ for a reason, getting up close to the stage (on their parents shoulders, perhaps) or sitting back in a lawn chair relaxing. For the weekend’s lineup, visit musicfightsback.com. (Submitted photo)

By Correne Martin 

 

In its fourth year in 2018, Music Fights Back is more than just a little one-time fundraiser with some raffles and a few hundred people. It’s morphed into a two-day rock festival featuring nationally-acclaimed headliners. But, in the end, its intent is as sincere as ever. Music Fights Back remains a cause for kids battling cancer, an opportunity to raise money and purchase digital tablet and MP3 devices so some of the most innocent patients can watch movies, play games and listen to music during cancer treatments. 

This year’s festival will be the weekend of June 22 and 23 on St. Feriole Island in Prairie du Chien. Music will start at 2 p.m. both days. Friday’s headliner is Wayland and Saturday’s is Saliva. 

From Wayland, Mich., the four-man headliner, Wayland, will take the stage Friday, having been played on all major rock stations, said Jeremy Cuff, Music Fights Back founder. “The drummer’s dad was the lead singer of Jackyl,” he noted. 

Saliva, which will shatter the stage as Saturday’s headliner, needs little introduction. The multi-platinum-selling band has been around since the late-‘90s and is known for hits such as “Always” and “Ladies and Gentlemen.”

Fourteen other bands will heat up the island, including Throw the Fight, hard rockers from Minneapolis, and Vyces, who’s coming back by popular demand. “They’re hard rock with a little bit of a Breaking Benjamin sound,” Cuff said. “They, straight up, called me and wanted to come back. The cancer cause is near and dear to their hearts. They even gave our fest a shout out at a Vegas festival this year.”

Cuff, his friends and over 100 local volunteers who help bring Music Fights Back to the region are pumped about the full 2018 lineup. 

Other bands include: Natty Nation, Wisconsin’s most famous reggae band; Eva Under Fire, a female-led hard rock band a lot like Evanescence; Marah in the Mainsail, a folksy rock band with the vibe of Mumford & Sons crossed with Imagine Dragons; Divided Minds, a three-piece pop punk band in the realm of Blink 182; 3 Pill Morning, a band with a radio hard rock sound; Moccasin Creek, a redneck rock rap band kind of like Kid Rock; The People, another folksy band; Revolution X, a heavy metal crew from Janesville; Charles Walker Band, an R&B soul group that’s played locally before; and Amillennial, a Fond du Lac heavy metal group whose guitarist, Jesse Myers, is original from Prairie du Chien. 

“This is his first hometown show and he’s really stoked about it,” Cuff said

Two hyper-local bands will grace the beer tent stage for the weekend. On Friday, Challenger will play, and Saturday, the band Your Mom will shake things up all day. 

“There’ll be meet and greets with the bands, and most of the artists will be hanging out with the crowd all weekend,” Cuff pointed out. Last year, the festival welcomed an estimated 1,800 fans to St. Feriole Island on Saturday, and Cuff anticipates even more this time around. He said fans range in age from 5 years old to 70-plus. 

“After last year, I got a lot of messages from parents saying it was so cool they were able to take their kids to the festival,” said Cuff, a cancer survivor himself. “We don’t tolerate fighting whatsoever. We’re hoping the crowd gets bigger than ever this year. People can choose whether to get up close to the stage action or bring their lawn chair and relax under a tree.”

Tickets can be purchased at Jim’s Bar, Leisure Time Sports Bar and Bowl or Mississippi Meats, all in Prairie du Chien, or at musicfightsback.com. Cuff added that local residents should tune in to area rock and classic rock radio stations for contests and ticket giveaways. 

“People will have the opportunity to get VIP tickets and get into the grounds early to watch the headliners do sound checks. There’ll also be free camping, free parking and some free beverages,” he explained. 

Food and beverages will be sold on site by the Music Fights Back Foundation and other vendors. Camping is available on the grounds and is encouraged for those seeking the safest way to party. Shuttles will also be offered locally from CouleeCab and SafeRide.

The Music Fights Back Foundation, which is established in McGregor, continues rockin’ for a reason each year in hopes of bringing music’s healing powers to pediatric cancer patients nationwide.

According to the organization’s website, “music gives us comfort, it becomes part of our souls and gives us strength in our times of need. [The foundation is] using music to fight back against cancer.

“Cancer is a battle for everyone who has to experience it and it’s even worse to see a child fighting for their life. But as widespread as cancer is, so too is music. These sound waves permeate the world around you and creep right into your soul—and who deserves to feel that way more than a child who’s fending off cancer?”

Since 2015, Music Fights Back has given out over 60 Samsung Galaxy tablets, iPads and iPods, along with accessories, to children with cancer. Furthermore, the organization has also donated to other cancer foundations as well. 

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