the-never-setting-suns

Never Setting Suns Preparing Next Album, Offer Up Free Download

    Cincinnati noise rockers The Never Setting Suns have been hard at work preparing the release of their sophomore effort, entitled Time & Eternity, out March 24th. The young trio of 20-somethings got their start a few years back at a pirate-themed party held inside a laser tag arena. That show, which began at …

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WNKU Announces Performers for Studio 89 Series

      The Greater Cincinnati area’s premiere non-profitable, publicly funded radio station, WNKU, returns this year with their weekly Studio 89 series after spending 2011 on hiatus. They’ve recently announced the artists performing this year, which will take place every Monday at 7 pm (EST) beginning February 13th, in the Digitorium at Northern Kentucky …

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bonnaroo book

Bonnaroo Hits the Bookshelves

  Official Press Release: We are thrilled to announce the release of the first and only official book about Bonnaroo! The book contains over 400 photos covering the first 10 years of Bonnaroo’s history, featuring shots taken by some of the best shooters working in music today, including Danny Clinch, C. Taylor Crothers, Jeff Kravitz …

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MusicNOW Fest Announces Lineup

    The MusicNOW Festival returns to Cincinnati March 28-30, 2012, with new work from Nico Muhly, Richard Reed Parry of Arcade Fire, Pulitzer Prize winner David Lang and performances by Grammy winners eighth blackbird with special guest Philip Glass, James McVinnie, Pedro Soler and Gaspar Claus, and a workshop presentation of Nico Muhly, Sufjan …

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Bad Veins Working on Next Album, Headed to the Movies

    Cincinnati indie-rock duo Bad Veins are set to release their highly anticipated new album, The Mess We’ve Made, on April 24th via a new deal with Austin, TX’s Modern Outsider Records. The new album was recorded over a three month period at Audiogrotto, a church-turned-recording studio, in Newport, Kentucky, and is the follow up to …

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Never Setting Suns Preparing Next Album, Offer Up Free DownloadWNKU Announces Performers for Studio 89 SeriesBonnaroo Hits the BookshelvesMusicNOW Fest Announces LineupBad Veins Working on Next Album, Headed to the Movies

Jan
27
2012

Never Setting Suns Preparing Next Album, Offer Up Free Download

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Cincinnati noise rockers The Never Setting Suns have been hard at work preparing the release of their sophomore effort, entitled Time & Eternity, out March 24th.

The young trio of 20-somethings got their start a few years back at a pirate-themed party held inside a laser tag arena. That show, which began at 1 am, included five hours of Neil Young and indie rock covers, and a few games of laser tag, lasting until the sun came up that day. It was then that the band realized they were onto something truly special and decided to put some serious thought into making their own music.

Taking influence in such bands as Crazy Horse, early Modest Mouse and Explosions in the Sky (EITS), the band’s early work depicts a familiar-yet-fresh sound of Neil-like guitar fuzz, 90′s indie rock and the dynamic rises and falls of EITS.

Like a lot of bands, I’ve always felt that the Never Setting Suns have really come to life in the live setting, with a wide array of pedals, effects and bouts of five-minute plus instrumental frenzies and guitar freakouts. But with “Meet Me There”, the first single from the new album that you can grab right here, they evoke that same spirit and essence. Producers like Ric Hordinski and Matt Moermond have captured that and allowed the band to do exactly what they do best.

Time & Eternity was recorded last year at Cincinnat’s Monastery Studios, a church-turned-recording studio. Catch the Never Setting Suns performing at Clifton’s Rohs Street Cafe on Saturday, February 11th.

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Jan
27
2012

WNKU Announces Performers for Studio 89 Series

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The Greater Cincinnati area’s premiere non-profitable, publicly funded radio station, WNKU, returns this year with their weekly Studio 89 series after spending 2011 on hiatus. They’ve recently announced the artists performing this year, which will take place every Monday at 7 pm (EST) beginning February 13th, in the Digitorium at Northern Kentucky University’s brand new Griffin Hall.

This year’s Studio 89 series kicks off with Texan-born/Columbus-based bluesman Hadden Sayers on February 13th. Other artists include Houston folk rock band Buxton (Feb. 20), Cincinnati 2011 CEA Singer-Songwriter of the Year Josh Eagle (Feb. 27), Brooklyn pianist Julian Velard (Mar. 12), Brooklyn indie-folk duo Barnaby Bright on April 2nd, Nashville Hall of Fame songwriter and Grammy nominee Matraca Berg on April 9th, and locals Robin Lacy & DeZydeco (Mar. 19), The Western (Mar. 26), Pete Dressman & S.U.N. (Apr. 16) and Majestic Man (Apr. 23).

The series will end with a performance from 63-year old rockabilly guitarist Bill Kirchen (of Commander Cody) on April 30th.

For those interested in attending, you should know that seating is limited and that reservations will be taken beginning the Tuesday before the event, and accepted until noon on the Friday before.

Check out archived Studio 89 performances on YouTube right here.

Learn how to lend your support to WNKU right here.

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Jan
26
2012

MusicNOW Fest Announces Lineup

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The MusicNOW Festival returns to Cincinnati March 28-30, 2012, with new work from Nico Muhly, Richard Reed Parry of Arcade Fire, Pulitzer Prize winner David Lang and performances by Grammy winners eighth blackbird with special guest Philip Glass, James McVinnie, Pedro Soler and Gaspar Claus, and a workshop presentation of Nico Muhly, Sufjan Stevens and Bryce Dessner’s new collaboration.

For the seventh consecutive year, MusicNOW is proud to present a program of exciting new music from some of the most adventurous artists working today.

This year’s festival features composers Philip Glass and Nico Muhly. Muhly is a prolific composer and collaborator. In 2011 he premiered two operas – “Dark Sisters”, a commission from the Metropolitan Opera, and “Two Boys”, a commission from the English National Opera. His more pop-oriented work includes collaborations with Antony & the Johnsons, Bjork, Jonsi (Sigur Ros) and Grizzly Bear. Two new works from Muhly will be premiered at the festival – a commission for eighth blackbird and a workshop presentation of a new song cycle collaboration between Muhly, Sufjan Stevens and Bryce Dessner.

The New York Times describes eighth blackbird as a “dexterous sextet that balances trills and tempos.” They will be joined by special guest Philip Glass to perform “Music in Similar Motion” and will also premiere Muhly’s new, yet to be titled commission. MusicNOW is also pleased to present a FREE organ concert at Christ Church Cathedral featuring James McVinnie, formerly of Westminster Abbey in London. The organ program includes a new composition by Richard Reed Parry and a new composition from Pulitzer Prize winning composer David Lang, along with pieces by Philip Glass, Bach, and Arvo Part. McVinnie will also perform Nico Muhly’s “O Antiphon Prelude.”

Pedro Soler returns to the festival this year and will be joined by his son, Gaspar Claus, to share work from their recent, Bryce Dessner-produced recording, “Barlande,” an improvisation combining traditional flamenco guitar and cello.

Tickets for the festival will be onsale January 27th at 10 am. Tickets are available at Brown Paper Tickets. Individual show tickets are $25 – Thursday, Friday – and two-day (Thursday and Friday) festival passes will be available for $35.

MusicNOW was founded in 2006 by Bryce Dessner of The National. Through the years, the festival has invited contemporary musicians and risk-taking artists who do not fit neatly into genre-defined categories. Past performances have included festival-only collaborations, world premiere compositions, and sold out audiences. The festival has featured Sharon Van Etten, The National, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, Joanna Newsom, Andrew Bird, Toumani Diabate, Bang on a Can, Grizzly Bear, Sufjan Stevens, Glenn Kotche of Wilco, and Kyaw Kyaw Naing among others. MusicNOW is presented by Chamber Music of Cincinnati.

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Jan
24
2012

Bad Veins Working on Next Album, Headed to the Movies

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Cincinnati indie-rock duo Bad Veins are set to release their highly anticipated new album, The Mess We’ve Made, on April 24th via a new deal with Austin, TX’s Modern Outsider Records. The new album was recorded over a three month period at Audiogrotto, a church-turned-recording studio, in Newport, Kentucky, and is the follow up to their breakout self-titled debut album that was released on Dangerbird Records 2009.

Bad Veins – Benjamin Davis (vocals, keyboard, guitar, etc) and Sebastian Schultz (drums) – formed in 2006 and quickly gained widespread buzz even before they released an album due to their legendary live shows. The duo takes the stage in pseudo-army uniforms with Seb thrashing with the enthusiasm of two punk drummers on his kit and Ben crooning stilly on his mic. They are joined on stage by a vintage megaphone, rotary telephone, and a reel-to-reel tape player nicknamed “Irene” (often counted as the third member of the band).

Their incredible live shows led them to New York City for the CMJ Festival in 2007, where they were considered one of the breakout bands for that year. It was that same year they started crisscrossing the US, relentlessly performing and building a cult-like following among fans and critics alike. In 2008, Bad Veins won the first ever “Target Music Maker Award” at the Tribeca Film Festival, and soon after earned themselves spots touring with a variety of noteworthy artists including Frightened Rabbit, We Were Promised Jetpacks, Maps & Atlases, Two Door Cinema Club, and more.

In addition, their self-titled debut album released in 2009 won numerous accolades. Dan Harris of ABC Amplified picked the album as #7 in the “Best Albums of 2009″ and wrote that Bad Veins were “criminally under-appreciated.” USA Today’s Pop Candy called the album’s closing track, “Go Home”, one of the Top 20 Songs of 2009. Also, the lead single, “Gold and Warm”, was the music for a video segment on Good Morning America called “Your Three Words.” The song is going to be featured in the upcoming blockbuster film Chronicle – out February 3rd via 20th Century Fox – and in the official soundtrack.

On April 24th, 2012, Bad Veins will follow up their impressive debut with the release of The Mess We’ve Made on Modern Outsider Records. Plans already have the band on the road starting in March and will keep them out and playing live for a majority of 2012. Stay tuned to their official site here, as well as their Facebook and Twitter pages for show announcements.

 

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Jan
24
2012

My Morning Jacket Collaborate With Forecastle Festival

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 January 24, 2012

Dear Forecastle Travelers -

The Forecastle Festival is thrilled to announce that My Morning Jacket will headline and assist in curating the festival’s 10th Anniversary. The 3-day event will take place July 13-15, 2012, at Louisville’s scenic, award-winning Waterfront Park.

My Morning Jacket, whose original members hail from Louisville and currently reside in the city, will headline Saturday night, and will collaborate with producers on festival sights, sounds and experiences, as well as charitable aspects of the event. Celebrating its tenth year, the festival will pay homage to its past, present, and future, highlighting Forecastle’s maritime theme while celebrating the very best of Louisville and Kentucky.

Over 75 additional artists will be announced in the upcoming weeks, including the Friday and Sunday night headliners. Separately ticketed late-night events will take place aboard The Ship (Belle of Louisville) as well as at the newly renovated Ice House.

Tickets will go on-sale January 27 at 12 pm (EST), including a limited quantity of specially-priced, $100 weekend passes. They can be purchased online at forecastlefest.com. Once this quantity is sold out, tickets will continue to be available at the next level ticket price. Travel packages will also be available, including accomodations at The Galt House – the festival’s official, waterfront hotel. For those who wish to dock up for the weekend, VIP “Captain’s Club” boat slips will also be available.

The event will mark the second partnership between The Forecastle Festival and AC Entertainment, producers of the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, Moogfest and more than 750 concerts and events throughout the country.

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Jan
21
2012

Pain Link Calls It Quits

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I’ve got some sad news to report today coming out of Cincinnati’s music community. Thrash metal band, Pain Link, have decided to throw in the towel. The band issued the following statement on their Facebook page just a few hours ago:

After several months of deliberation, the members of Pain Link have decided to lay the band to rest. This was not an easy decision to make but given the current state of the music industry and various members having other commitments & responsibilites outside of the band, it was collectively deemed necessary to end things at this point and time.

Pain Link formed in 2002 and released our first disc in 2003. Over the course of the last nine years our band has been fortunate enough to have released four self-produced/self-financed CD’s, played well over 300+ local & regional shows to mobs of crazed metal fans, and shared the stage with dozens of high profile National acts. We have also had the opportunity to play some of the best metal clubs and festivals our region has to offer. The fans and friends we’ve made over the lifetime of our band are some of the best people we’ve ever known. We cherish your support and will always appreciate what you have done for us.

Pain Link is proud to be one of the very few true thrash metal bands to ever come out of our area and feel privileged to be able to leave behind a legacy of music for future generations to enjoy. As a thank you to everyone that has supported us, we will be releasing all of our recorded material for a limited time as free downloads in the coming weeks. We will also start to release many archived video clips on YouTube over the next several months.

We would like to conclude this statement by thanking our families, friends, fans, booking agents, promoters, club owners, and all of the bands locally and regionally that have supported us since day one.

Sincerely,
PAIN LINK 

By combining various elements of classic, thrash, death and black metal, Pain Link created their own unique sound that appealed to a variety of metal fans. In 2004 the band took home top honors at Bogart’s battle of the bands-style “Rumble”, and the following year, would be named by CityBeat for having one of the top local releases of the year for their debut full-length album, The Burden of Sin. Throughout their short-lived existence, Pain Link has also been nominated numerous times at the annual Cincinnati Entertainment Awards.

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Jan
19
2012

Avett Brothers, Slightly Stoopid & Matisyahu Among Wakarusa Additions

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The Wakarusa Music Festival announced today the third and final phase of artist additions. The festival, now held in the Mulberry Mountains of Ozark, Arkansas, will take place on the weekend of May 31st, 2012.

Among the artists announced today are the Avett Brothers, Matisyahu, Ghostland Observatory, the String Cheese Incident side project EOTO, the Travelin’ McCoury’s featuring Keller Williams, and Dayton, Ohio’s the Werks.

All these bands join a cast that already includes Pretty Lights, Primus, the Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir with special guests Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes and Jackie Greene, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Girl Talk, Fitz & the Tantrums, G. Love & Special Sauce, and Athens, Ohio’s Papadosio.

In typical Wakarusa fashion, many of the artists performing this year will play multiple times throughout the weekend including Umphrey’s McGee, Slightly Stoopid, Balkan Beat Box, Tinariwen, Keller Williams, Split Lip Rayfield, the Infamous Strindusters, Lyrics Born and Cincinnati natives the Heartless Bastards, who are now based out of Austin, Texas.

Purchase tickets now for Wakarusa 2012 right here.

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Jan
19
2012

The Bunbury Music Festival: Cincinnati’s Next Big Thing

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In a little less than six months, Cincinnati will be preparing for what could possibly become one of the premier outdoor music festivals in the midwest. On the weekend of July 13th, the first ever Bunbury Festival will come to life at Sawyer Point and Yeatman’s Cove. Bunbury is said to be featuring 100 or so high-profile indie rock acts, most of whom are nationally touring artists.

In a 2011 interview with Bill Donabedian, the festival’s creator, he calls Bunbury “Cincy’s own Lollapalooza” and goes on to mention that a successful first year would see 50,000 people rocking out to the National on the Yeatman’s Cove stage, followed by the Flaming Lips closing out the night on Sawyer Point’s P&G Pavilion stage. You can find the complete interview right here.

While I wouldn’t be surprised to see the National or even the Heartless Bastards or Greenhornes performing at the festival this summer because of their connections to Cincinnati, it appears that the Flaming Lips are definitely out because they’re already booked for Belgium’s Dour Festival the same weekend.

It’s hard to say exactly what types or what level of acts Donabedian will go after for the festival because afterall, it is a festival in its very first year and you might assume they don’t have a whole lot of money to work with. With his previous involvement in the MidPoint Music Festival and the Indie Summer Series on Fountain Square, I would think we’ll probably end up seeing a few familiar names from both MidPoint and the Summer Series. Some names you probably won’t find on the Bunbury lineup, however, include Radiohead, Florence + the Machine, the Silversun Pickups, Snow Patrol, Young the Giant and MidPoint vets Caribou, all of whom are playing festivals abroad that same weekend.

Of course when it comes down to it there’s just no way to predict or assume what bands will wind up playing the festival because there’s just too many possibilities. If this truly is a festival that sits on a level somewhere between Lollapalooza or Pitchfork (which Bunbury has also been referred to), local music fans are certainly in for one hell of a weekend.

Here’s some food for thought…

Let’s take a look at some of the bands that have played Lollapalooza and Pitchfork in recent years. I wouldn’t go as far to say that we’ll get any of these names at Bunbury, but it’s certainly something to think about:

Andrew Bird
Arcade Fire
Band of Horses
Beach House
Big Boi
The Black Keys
Bon Iver
Broken Social Scene
Built to Spill
Cypress Hill
Death Cab For Cutie
The Decemberists
Dinosaur Jr.
Fleet Foxes
Foo Fighters
Girls
Green Day
Guided By Voices
The Hold Steady
Iron & Wine
Jane’s Addiction
Jarvis Cocker
The Jesus Lizard
Kanye West
The Killers
Kings of Leon
Local Natives
Matt & Kim
Modest Mouse
Mumford & Sons
Muse
The New Pornographers
Pavement
Sleigh Bells
Snoop Dogg
Sonic Youth
Soundgarden
Spoon
Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks
The Strokes
Thurston Moore
TV on the Radio
Vampire Weekend
The Walkmen
Weezer
Wolf Parade
Yeasayer
Yo La Tengo

Here are some other bands that have performed at MidPoint and the Indie Summer Series in recent years. Again, I can’t say if we should expect to see any of these at Bunbury, but most of them are the types of bands that generally hit up the festival circuit:

Asobi Seksu
Best Coast
Chairlift
Cut Copy
Dawes
Deerhoof
The Felice Brothers
Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit
The Joy Formidable
Maps & Atlases
Margot & the Nuclear So & So’s
Mates of State
Neon Indian
Oberhofer
Robert Pollard’s Boston Spaceship
Surfer Blood
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists
These United States
Those Darlins
Toro Y Moi
Washed Out
Why?

Then of course you have the locally-based bands. While the focus of Bunbury seems to be on bands based outside of Cincinnati, we can probably expect to see some of the biggest names in the local scene at Bunbury as well. Here are some names to think about:

500 Miles to Memphis
Bad Veins
Belle Histoire
Bootsy Collins
Brian Olive
Buffalo Killers
The Cincy Brass
Daniel Martin Moore
Fists of Love
Foxy Shazam
Freekbass
The Kickaways
Kim Taylor
Oui Si Yes
Pomegranates
Pop Empire
Sacred Spirits
The Seedy Seeds
Skeetones
The Tillers
Two Headed Dog
Walk the Moon
Wussy
You, You’re Awesome

One other local name I wanted to throw out there was the Afghan Whigs. In December of 2011, they announced that they would be reuniting for the first time in over five years for some shows in 2012.  They’re playing in London on May 27th, in Asbury Park on September 22nd, and at the two installments of the Primavera Festival (which take place on the last weekend of May and in early July, just days before Bunbury).

Stay tuned to BrokenMic.com for all the latest information on the 2012 Bunbury Festival. Tickets are currently on-sale now right here. One-day passes are just $46 while the full three-day pass is priced at $93.

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Jan
19
2012

Show Preview: Cheyenne Marie Mize with Margaret Darling

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Whimsical, haunting, dreamlike music that eschews the traditional formula, CheyenneMarieMize presents a rainbow of juxtapositions. The New York Times described her 2010 debut, Before Lately, as “sweet without being cloying, weary without hopelessness,” noting the vast space between notes, yet lack of air.

Before Lately was a slow-burning, introspective, meditative affair. Her follow-up EP, We Don’t Need (out January 24th on Yep Rock) offers an expansion of the sonic palette she’s established – with more dynamic moods, instrumentation, and experimentation. Using only a dense array of percussion, the opener “Wishing Well” nods to both classic R&B flavors and adventurous modern pop. A somber funeral march provides the backbeat of “Don’t Call Me Beautiful” before Cheyenne showcases her upbeat troubadour chops within the resplendent piano swing of “Going Under.” “Keep It” and “It Lingers” conjures a bombastic form of classic college radio songwriting. Instrumental album closer “Back Around” goes full desert chamber rock – monolithic walls of cavernous sound fill the backdrop behind spacey vocal samples and cinematic songs.

Mize wants listeners to know that “the songs on We Don’t Need are meant to be digested individually more than as continuous parts of a complete whole. Each has its own character and will likely be enjoyed in different mental states. As a whole, the album is surely eclectic, but each part gives a little taste of the things to come…”

Opening the show is none other than Margaret Darling, best known as the multi-instrumentalist/singer from local indie-pop trio The Seedy Seeds. Margaret has been performing on the side as a solo artist over the past year or so, though her solo material is more melancholic and darker, and not at all what you’d come to expect from the bright and upbeat Seeds. Check out Margaret’s full interview with Metromix from last year right here.

When: Wednesday, February 8th, 2012
Where: MOTR Pub, 1345 Main St., Over-the-Rhine, Cincinnati, Ohio; (513)381-6687
Time: 10 pm

All shows at MOTR Pub are free, 21-and-up and well-produced.

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Jan
17
2012

Bonnaroo Rumors Include Radiohead, Beach Boys and Phish

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Speculation never ends for Bonnaroo fans. Almost the minute the festival ends one year, people are already talking about the next year and which bands they hope to see down in Manchester, Tennessee come June. One of these places where people come together from all over the country (and perhaps even the world) is through the online messagboard forum Inforoo.

For the most part, however, it’s all just wishful thinking. Feeling strongly towards a band doesn’t guarantee that they will be there simply because you love them, but it will certainly leave you with the thoughts of them playing on the main stage in front of 80,000 people on a warm summer night.

For those of us who dedicate the “off-season” to Inforoo, we have been fortunate enough to find a friend in a user known simply as “insider.” No one knows for sure who exactly this woman is, but over the past few years she has proven to be a reliable source.

She comes around this time every year, offering up information about who she believes is on the lineup. Last year alone she name-dropped several acts well before the lineup was released, all of whom ended up being there like Arcade Fire, Widespread Panic, Robert Plant, My Morning Jacket, the Black Keys and one “major rap act” as she put it, which turned out to be Eminem.

Insider didn’t return to Inforoo until December 23rd, 2011, after a nine month absence. Her first post on that day said that someone “hit upon something” and that there was “quite a correct rumor popping up.” A week later we were told that two out of three of the headliners/big name artists had been guessed.

Fast forward to just five days ago, on January 12th, when she unveiled that Phish would be making a return to Bonnaroo this summer. Later that same day she informed us that “at least one” of the following would be there – the Beach Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Foo Fighters and Radiohead. Because she said “at least one”, I’m personally taking that to mean that probably two of those acts will be there.

And finally, yesterday, we were told that one of the headliners name’s begins with the letter “R” and that the second letter is a vowel, though I’m assuming most words that begin with the letter “R” are followed by a vowel.

It was with that post that one would be led to believe she is either talking about Radiohead or the Red Hot Chili Peppers. But she never really said that this hint leads specifically to the artists she had previously mentioned. One might assume that but you can never know for sure. For all we know she could be hinting at the Rolling Stones, Rage Against the Machine, Rush, Rihanna or even Roger Waters (who is already touring in the midwestern states at that time of year).

While all this information may not be official just yet, the one thing for sure is that insider has proven to be a valuable and credible source. Be on the look out for the official Bonnaroo lineup announcement, which most of us are assuming will be out at somepoint during the next 3-5 weeks.

Have your heard of Bonnaroo clues? Play along and follow Gary Chardonnay on Twitter here, as well as my full coverage of the Bonnaroo lineup clues right here.

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