Milwaukee Music Premiere: Wisconsin Space Program, ‘Time Machine’

Every week, the Milwaukee Music Premiere sponsored by Density Studios connects the city’s artists with our listening audience. If you’re an artist with a track you’d like us to debut exclusively on Radio Milwaukee, head over to our Music Submission page to learn how.

Today’s premiere provides a great lesson for bands looking to grab someone’s attention about a new track before they even get a chance to listen. In short, it never hurts to include a line like the one supplied to us by Wisconsin Space Program:

“This song was inspired by Austin Powers cutscenes.”

Brilliant.

Befitting the International Man of Mystery, Wisconsin Space Program provided no further explanation or context, leaving us listeners to make our own connection while enjoying “Time Machine” as it debuts here.

The title of the track jives nicely with a band that jumps around the musical timeline, from sunny to psych to stoner. This particular song leans a little heavier, both in the bold guitar riffs and the major frustration bursting from the lyrics:

I don’t wanna hear any of that noise
That cookie-cutter dopamine 
I don’t wanna see your pretty face
I need a break from the fake routine

And I don’t wanna think about anything
I just want my time machine
I don’t wanna stare at a little screen
I just want my time machine

The group’s bassist/vocalist Sean Anderson explained further:

“I feel like, growing up, we were fed the idea that the future would be this utopia where technology would be fun and exciting and improve our lives. Now, we’re living in the future, and it sucks. We were promised hoverboards and jet packs when we were kids, and instead we have AI data centers and the ‘doom scroll.’ I just want my time machine. I want to drift silently through the cosmos and block out the noise — maybe go back and ride a dinosaur.’

The song “Time Machine” is a bit of a time machine in and of itself, in that the track was originally supposed to land on Wisconsin Space Program’s debut album, Sun in Your Hands, last June. But the physical limitations of vinyl forced the group to back-pocket it until right now.

Enjoy the delayed gratification by hitting the “Listen” button at the top of the page, or you can catch “Time Machine” playing on 88Nine throughout today (6:30 and 10:30 am.; 2:30 and 6:30 p.m.). Wisconsin Space Program will also be live and in person at Humboldt Park’s Chill on the Hill on June 23.