For as long as I can remember, Cincinnati has been a festival kind of town. Whether we’re celebrating our German heritage at Oktoberfest, or sampling the tastiest of foods at the Taste of Cincinnati and Goetta Fest, the people here love to get out and experience all the best things the city has to offer. More specifically, I’ve noticed over the past several years that people here really take their music seriously, and that is why we’re starting to see an over-abundance of music festivals. Don’t take that as a bad thing though; I can never get enough music.
The Clifton Heights Music Festival is returning in a few weeks, and judging by the lineup, this looks to be the biggest and best yet. The festival takes place over two nights, April 2-3 (hey that’s my birthday weekend!), and obviously it takes place in the city of Clifton, in six bars near Calhoun and West McMillan Streets, just past the University of Cincinnati. Tickets and beer are cheap, and there’s plenty of amazing Cincinnati bands playing, covering all styles of music. Let’s take a look at the daily schedule:
Rohs St. Café
9:00-9:30 – Tiyi
9:45-10:15 – Jameze
10:30-11:15 – Mahogany Reign, CJ The Cynic, & Bullying Ben Jones
11:30-12:00 – The Happy Maladies
Baba Budan’s
9:30-10:15 – Wade Baker Jazz Collaboration
10:30-11:00 – The No No Knots
11:15-11:45 – Madras Lounge
12:00-12:30 – The Frankl Project
12:45 – 1:30 – Cincy Brass
Uncle Woody’s
9:30-10:15 – Twelve-Foot-Tall-Band
10:30-11:00 – The Electric Generals
11:15-11:45 – The Flux Capacitors
12:00- 12:30 – The Shy Spots
12:45 – Close – Hip-Hop/Rock/Funk/Dance Party with DJ’s Kyle Cannon, K-Frey & Tim Lachut
Mac’s Pizza Pub
9:30-10:15 – Sans Axiom
10:30-11:00 – Frankly Speaking
11:15-11:45 – Losanti
12:00-12:30 – Eclipse
12:45 – 1:30 – Perfect Norm
Christy’s Biergarden
9:00-10:30 – Hip/Hop with DJ Clockwork, Constant Elevashun, Da 3rd Element, Camp David, Moxy Monster, MC Till & Skandal Da Ruckus Man
10:45 -11:15 – The Comforts
11:30 -12:00 – Loudmouth
12:15-12:45 – Sango Dango
1:00-1:30 – The Pinstripes
Murphy’s Pub
9:30-10:15 – Matthew Shelton’s Picnic
10:30-11:00 – Free Sophia
11:15-11:45 – mallory
12:00-12:30 – J Dorsey
12:45 – 1:30 – Sparrow Bellows
Saturday, April 3 (my birthday!)
Rohs St. Café
9:00-9:30 – Peter Adams
9:45-10:15 – Iolite
10:30-11:45 – Hip Hop Set with DJ DQ, Elementz Hip-Hop Center, Blade Triple, illete the 7th Grader, ill Poetic, Sean Little,
Wonder Brown and Theory Hazit
Baba Budan’s
9:30-10:30 – Venegas
10:30-11:00 – Hope Springs Eternal
11:15-11:45 – Wade Johnston & The Navigators
12:00-12:30 – Dan Orlando
12:45 – 1:30 – The Marmalade Brigade
Uncle Woody’s
9:30-10:15 – The Skeetones
10:30-11:00 – Chick Pimp, Coke Dealer at a Bar
11:15-11:45 – Moneytrees River
12:00-12:30 – The Harlequins
12:45 – 1:30 – Hip-Hop/Experimental/Pop/Dance Party with DJ Dirty C & DJ Positronic
Mac’s Pizza Pub
9:30-10:15 – Shadow Raptr
10:30-11:00 – Bones Dupree
11:15-11:45 – Pharaoh Loosey
12:00-12:30 – Best Revenge
12:45 – 1:30 – Lazy Ass Destroyer
Christy’s Biergarden
9:30-10:00 – The 54
10:15-10:45 – Where They Landed
11:00-11:45 – Noctaluca
12:00-12:30 – Banderas
12:45 – 1:30 – The Prohibitionists
Murphy’s Pub
9:30-10:15 – Defective Males
10:30-11:00 – Wist
11:15-11:45 – Buckra
12:00-12:30 – Josh Eagle & The Harvest City
12:45 – 1:30 – Lifelike