By Lora Kaelber Special to OnMilwaukee.com Published Apr 25, 2018 at 6:01 PM

MKE Band Camp is a new music series on OnMilwaukee, giving you the quick 411 on upcoming concerts in the 414.

Stop in to the side bar at The Fire Pit Sports Bar and Grill at Potawatomi Hotel & Casino to catch Casey James with Jay Matthes on Thursday night. The show begins at 8:30 p.m.

Price of admission

Free – so you have no excuse!

Why you can't miss it

You may know Casey James as a finalist from the ninth season of "American Idol." Or maybe you know him from his first studio album and top 15 country hit. But Casey James has found his true groove by heading back to his first love: blues. Expect incredible toe-tapping and table-drumming rhythms. Expect to want to dance. Expect to be dazzled.

James is joined by local country artist Jay Matthes, a Milwaukee music hidden gem. Matthes’ brand of country is your mom and dad's country with a modern edge. It's soul-lifting filled with lyrical guitar and killer banjo.

Song starter pack

The Hit: "Bulletproof"

A crazy combination of blues meets honky tonk, this gritty, country-infused song about letting loose and falling into the music at your favorite watering hole will get you up and dancing.

The B-Side Beauty: "Stupid Crazy"

A mellow love song that reminds you of sitting in a jazz club, falling for someone special.

The Opening Act Listen Up: "The Light"

Give Jay Matthes’ "The Light" a listen, a windows-down, sing it out loud summer love song that will get you on your feet.

Lora Kaelber Special to OnMilwaukee.com
Moving to Milwaukee in 1998, Lora quickly adapted to and embraced big city living. A graduate of Carthage College and Marquette University Law School, Lora clerked for the Hon. Diane Sykes at the Wisconsin Supreme Court, worked as a litigator in private practice, and most recently was employed as a development officer for the MACC Fund.

In all of her experiences, time was focused on writing which has been a passion since junior high school. A series of food service industry jobs both before and after law school taught her that bringing out the human side in any story is key to great storytelling and good writing.

A die-hard east side girl, you'll usually find Lora down by the lake or on the Oakleaf. She's an avid photographer, and sometimes storm chaser.

Hobbies include biking, gardening, cross country skiing, swimming, blogging, and of course working on her fictionalized autobiography--fictionalized, because whose life is really interesting enough to fill 400 pages?

She's in IMDb. Look her up.