This Saturday at the Cactus Club, popular Wisconsin music blog Muzzle of Bees and its creator, Ryan Matteson, bring six bands from local to national level in triumph of the blog's five years of music exploration.

But that triumph will extend further than that -- it'll be the triumph of a community connecting together to the world of music via the Web as well a celebration of the power and emotion that will come from voices, guitars, and an assortment of other instruments.

The night features Wisconsin's own Daredevil Christopher Wright and Conrad Plymouth as well as Midwest/national bands The Small Cities, Strand of Oaks, Common Loon, and White Pines. Prior to the show OnMilwaukee.com got a chance to talk with Ryan Matteson (who also publicizes shows at The Pabst, The Riverside and Turner Hall) about his blog's milestone in addition to examining the six bands playing (Part II).

Part I: Ryan Matteson

OnMilwaukee.com: As you said on your blog recently the show Saturday is a bit of an excuse to get some of your favorite acts from the area. Could you tell me briefly why you pick the bands you did and how they kind of symbolize what you're doing with your blog?

Ryan Matteson: I think the bands playing Saturday capture perfectly a mix of what I'm listening to at the moment. I've been fortunate to see most of them in concerts many times and adore their albums and live show. As much as I love my record collection, nothing comes closest to the live music experience, so I hope I have brought some of my favorite musicians to friends and strangers through this showcase.

OMC: What do you think about having the blog last five years?

RM: I really only stop to think about it when I get an e-mail saying I owe my web host money for another year of service. I feel very fortunate to an audience outside of my circle of friends. I've always loved sharing the music I love with my friends, the blog just makes that group of friends a little larger, which is cool with me!

OMC: How did you get interested in making a music blog? What got you interested in covering music in this area and did you see a need for it (i.e. was there a lack of that when you started?)?

RM: I started the blog initially as a way to capture my backpacking trip across Europe with my best friend. I sensed my parents concern with the two of us heading off into the unknown for an undetermined amount of time and thought it would be a good way for them to follow us around and know we were OK. When I got back from that trip I decided to post on my website the stuff that I would normally be e-mailing to my friends that suggested albums and concerts coming to town. Once people I didn't know started stopping by I realized I could bridge the gap between what wasn't being reported in the newspaper or played on the radio.

The format's been pretty much the same, I basically just post what I'm listening to and enjoying at the moment. I think the best lesson I learned is to just be myself and cover what I like and not try to be the blog that covers everything.

OMC: "Muzzle of Bees," as many know, is a Wilco song. Did you have to go through anything to be able to use it and any remarks from the band?

RM: I never thought about it really, mostly because I never expected anyone to really read it other than my parents and close friends. I know the band is aware of the site.

OMC: The blog's grown pretty nicely over the years and around the time you got the job booking at Pabst/Riverside/Turner Hall you've been able to put together and sponsor some shows. Were you surprised about the level of attention/popularity it's gotten over the years and how you go about picking shows to sponsor with it?

RM: I'm always surprised when I meet someone who knows about my Web site. It's definitely a surprise when your dad tells you some of his co-workers follow the site. I tend to only seek out and sponsor shows I feel need to be in Milwaukee. There is so much music going on, I feel it's important to use whatever level of trust I've built to bring bands to town that might normally never play in the city. My aspirations don't get much bigger than that. If I can help host a guy like A.A. Bondy twice at Club Garibaldi I feel pretty privileged.

OMC: Covering local and national music must give you a pretty good idea about the music scenes over the past five years. Have you noticed any trends in music in the five years you've done the blog? Any thoughts what it might be like in the next five years?

RM: Absolutely. There has never been a better time to be a music fan or be in a band. I expect that to only get better in the next five years. The doors to new music discovery have been blown open thanks to the Internet. On a local level, the city of Milwaukee is packed with talent. Some of my favorite bands in the world live in this city. I'm proud to say that.

OMC: Have any thoughts or advice for our readers?

RM: My advice to any aspiring bloggers would be to be themselves and post every day. Don't worry about traffic statistics or what will get you a bunch of page views. Your audience will find you.

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