From MTV’s The Hills, to Sunday night football with the Packers, the Appleton, Wisconsin-based rock band, The Wildbirds, has seen its fair share of exposure. But, that’s not to say the long-haired, '70s-rock-influenced foursome hasn’t earned it. In just a few years the Wildbirds went from having no place to practice (literally being kicked out of the garage and basement day after day by the local police force), to writing material in a secluded cabin outside of Appleton-- the fruits of which are now realized in the form of the Wildbirds' recently-released, debut LP, Golden Daze.

All natives of the same Wisconsin town in which Harry Houdini spent his childhood, and where Lawrence University and an endless assortment of cheese factories have set up shop, the Wildbirds are the perfect Wisconsin tour guide. So, psychoPEDIA enlisted the help of Wildbirds alum Nicholas Stuart in the midst a cross-Canadian tour, to ask about the band’s beloved hometown. Here, Stuart discusses cheese, the illustrious escape artist and Wisconsin’s best-kept secret:

Where are you right now, Nicholas?
We’re in Edmonton [Canada] at a junkyard trying to get our bus up and running. It breaks down on us every day. It’s a beast that runs on vegetable oil, waste and grease. We installed it because when you travel so much you feel guilty about all the [pollution and] shit you’re adding. It’s also theoretically cheaper, but not when it breaks down all the time. I have a little animosity if you can’t tell [laughs].

What are you most homesick for right now?
Well, for one, cheap drinks. But, that’s not the first one; I miss my family first. I’m one of six kids, and my parents have ten acres with horses and dogs and such. So, it’s kind of a nice retreat. A nice break from the small bunk bed I’m confined to on the bus.

How would you describe Fox Valley, or, specifically, Appleton?
It’s a charming place; Appleton is definitely a bit of a rich town. It’s conservative, with a slew of great restaurants and, of course, Starbucks, Chilis, Red Robin and the like. Some of the surrounding areas have a bit more of a charmingly dirty feel.

What are the people like?
The people in Appleton are amazing – pretension is very low there. It’s so refreshing -- you come back from tour and maybe your head is a mess; you can always expect people to be down-to-earth. If for one second you lose your humility, the moment you step back to town you’ll get it back. There is no room in a town that small for people to think that they’re better than each other.

Wisconsin is known for its cheese. Where are the best places to find some?
There are places all around. Every gas station will have fresh cheese. Cheese curds are what it’s all about. They’re like little curds, they squeak – people call them squeaky cheese. They’re extremely delicious.

Where do you guys go if you’re looking for a sit-down meal out of the house?
There’s an amazing Indian restaurant called Sairam; I can’t really talk about it because I miss it. They have the best Indian north of Chicago. We’re only four hours north of Chicago, but still... I always get a vegetable masawa and mango ice cream. Katsuya, they’ve got great sushi and those hot plates where the chefs cut stuff up at your table and flip shit into your cup. There are also a lot of good steak houses, like Prime Quarter; they have these big Texas-style restaurants and they’ll have huge cuts of meat in freezers and refrigerators and you walk by and grab the meat you want. They have big grills and you cook it yourself.

Best post-show/late-night grease trap?
There’s a pizza shop on College Ave. called Sal’s that stays open for all the drunk folks, and the sub shop Erbert and Gerbert's.

Speaking of drinking, what are your staple spots?
We always meet up on College Ave midweek – usually we’re playing a show on the weekends. Monday through Thursday I’ll be upset if I pay more than $1.50 for a beer, for a mixer, maybe $3. We go to Dr Jekyll’s. It’s dark and there’s a smoking ban in Appleton, so they have a little heated beer garden where you can smoke with a drink in your hand. And, there’s a bar in Neenah called Cranky Pat’s – it’s a great pizza joint and a really cool bar.

Where would you recommend out-of-towners shack up?
There’s a great new boutique hotel, Copper Leaf, that’s pretty amazing. It’s right on College Avenue – most everything is on College Avenue. A lot of the culture is centered there. You’ll find some bed and breakfasts too, but that’s a good, non-chain place. It’s right near a great coffee shop downtown where we play most of our shows – Copper Rock. There’s not much for all ages, so you end up tearing up a coffee shop for the night. There are tons of top-40 bars where most people go, but I never go to those places – we usually get called gay if we do. We stick out like a sore thumb in our town. One of my favorite places to play is The Reptile Palace; that’s where most of our debauchery happens. It’s a really small joint with pool tables and people pile in.

What about outdoor activities now that fall’s here?
The Fox River is nice to look at… but it’s one of the ten most polluted rivers. They recommend not eating more than one fish from it a week – to me that means just don’t eat the fucking fish. There’s Pierce Park and Memorial Park, which are nice. Harry Houdini was from there; there’s a History Museum and mansion [with exhibits on Houdini]. The first house with power, or something like that, is in Appleton. It’s a beautiful house on the river. You can go inside from time to time. When I was a kid I went to a haunted house there… I’m not sure if they still do it. It’s quite possible.

What's Appleton’s best-kept secret?
I think the women are beautiful in Appleton. It’s surprising; I don’t’ know there’s just lot of naturally pretty women. It’s such a small dating pool though. You have to choose your battles because in a small town everyone knows about everything.

~Alisa Gould-Simon


Go There:
Dr. Jekyll's, 314 E College Ave
Jim's Place, 223 E College Ave
Sal's Pizza, 511 W College Ave
Katsuya, 411 W College Ave