Archive for the ‘Concerts’ Category
The Clifton Heights Music Festival
March 9th, 2010
Posted in Concerts, Local Music, music festivals
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
St. Patty’s Day on Fountain Square
March 9th, 2010
Posted in Concerts, Local Music
It would appear that Spring has finally sprung. The several feet of snow that covered my yard for the past month or two has almost completely melted away and the forecast for the month of March is looking to have an average of about fifty-something degrees. The good weather has arrived just in time for St. Patty’s Day. Celebrate the holiday downtown with green beer this weekend, with the annual St. Patty’s Day Parade, followed by the first outdoor concert event of the year on Fountain Square. There’s a lot of great bands playing this Saturday, from locals like The Tigerlilies, who kick things off at 1 pm, the Mt. Pleasant String Band, The Tillers and the Buffalo Killers. The Super Desserts from Columbus, and Rhode Island indie-folk band Deer Tick, are also on the bill. Here’s the full schedule:
1 pm The Tigerlilies
2:05 pm Mt. Pleasant String Band
3:10 pm Mark Utley and Magnolia Mountain
4:15 pm The Super Desserts
5:20 pm The Tillers
6:25 pm Buffalo Killers
8 pm Deer Tick
Related show
The Debut of Pop Empire
February 28th, 2010
Posted in CD Releases, Concerts, Local Music
For the second night in a row, a local music release show at the Southgate House brought in a sold out crowd, again turning away fans at the door. Friday night, 500 Miles to Memphis drew nearly a thousand people to the whole house show, which featured over ten bands on all three of its stages. Last night, Pop Empire made their debut upstairs in the tiny parlour, bringing in about one hundred and fifty people that filled the room wall to wall. I know one hundred and fifty people doesn’t sound like a whole lot compared to the previous night of a thousand, but if you’ve ever been in the parlour at the Southgate House, you can probably imagine exactly how it felt in this room last night.
The great thing about a show in the parlour is that it provides a much more up close and intimate concert experience, not just for the fans but for the band as well. I like to think that because of this, it’s easier for a band to feed off of the crowd’s energy, thus providing some of the most classic shows you’ll ever witness in the Cincinnati area. Last night was certainly one of those classic shows.
The night began around 8:30 pm in the third floor gallery, where several local artist’s displayed artwork inspired by the music from Pop Empire’s EP, Rainy Child. There was a lot of visually-stimulating pieces, and having already heard these songs, it was interesting to see how these artist’s interpreted the songs onto paper.
The music began just after 9:30 pm, with The Lion’s Rampant up first. Stuart, Nick and Nate are typically a rowdy bunch, perhaps captivating that rockstar persona the best among any of the area’s bands, but they seemed to tone down the wild mayhem last night. That’s not to say that it wasn’t a great performance (it certainly was) but they did have the same strong stage presence and the musical closeness to each other that still proves they are deserving of the title of best live act in the area. They covered older songs from their first two EP’s, like “Need A Man?” and new songs from their upcoming debut full-length, It’s Fun To Do Bad Things, which comes out next month. They kick off their midwestern Spring tour with the release party on March 13 at the Mockbee with The Guitars.
Up next was another one of the area’s best bands, The Seedy Seeds. Their set featured mostly new songs from their critically-acclaimed/local album of the year, Count the Days. With Mike switching back and forth between banjo and guitar, Margaret with guitar and accordion, and Brian Penick whose drumkit is fashioned with synchronized Christmas lights to his every beat, The Seedy Seeds will always make you feel good and put a smile on your face with their mix of electronica, folk and indie pop. They’re heading back to Austin’s South by Southwest Festival in a few weeks, and will celebrate with a send-off show March 12 at the Mad Hatter with MidPoint vets Loyal Divide, Peasant, and Ben Davis of Bad Veins and Yusef Quotah of You, You’re Awesome, both whom are also playing SXSW this year.
But the band everyone seemed overly anxious to see was Pop Empire, who were making their live debut. Most everyone seems to be familiar with Cam Cochran, whether it be his work as a solo artist, his time with The Lion’s Rampant and The Sheds, or even his work in the studio as a producer and engineer, Cam is certainly one of the most respected names in the Cincinnati music scene. But not everyone is familiar with the name Henrie Wilson and his work as a solo artist. I’m not sure how this collaboration came to be, but I’m glad that it did.
Pop Empire’s set last night was short, sweet and inspiring, with Cam handling the guitar duties and Henrie taking control of the keys/synth and all the samples and beats coming from his laptop. Both Cam and Henrie share lead vocal duties for the songs, and for the most part, it seems like they were out to bring a number of styles, influences and elements to the table, creating no two songs that sound alike. Like I said, it was a short and sweet set, and every song seemed to be better than the last. Before I knew it the show was over and everyone was left wanting more. We may not have gotten an encore from Pop Empire last night, but this is a band that you’ll be hearing a lot about this year.
500 Miles Draws Massive Crowd For CD Release
February 27th, 2010
Posted in Concerts, Local Music
Nearly a thousand people came out to support the 500 Miles to Memphis CD release show last night at Newport’s Southgate House. The historical/haunted venue sold out just before 500 Miles took the stage around 11 pm, and some were even turned away. The bill featured a number of other bands, some of 500’s local and out of town friends. Knowing that there would be a big crowd, I arrived about an hour before the whole thing started, to find an already decent sized crowd.
Locals Duppy a’ Jamba (pictured above), were the first band to start things off, right around 8:30 pm in the upstairs parlour. They brought a big, excited crowd that danced along to their feel-good mix of punk, ska, reggae, jazz and funk. They were as tight as any band I’ve ever seen; from the drummer and percussionist who provided some nasty beats, to the organist and bassist who rounded out the sound, to the men on trombone and sax who traded solos throughout…all were led by their fearless, powerful leader who shouted out their politically-charged anthems. Downstairs in the ballroom, Nashville’s Shotgun Lover started things off on the mainstage. I wasn’t at all familiar with these guys, but was ever so glad that 500 introduced them to Cincinnati. I was hooked from the moment I heard (what sounded like to me), a blend of old school Wilco and My Morning Jacket, influenced by hard rock, blues and metal. Upstairs in the lounge, Paul K of Louisville’s Weathermen brought a quieter side to things. The veteran songwriter who has over thirty recordings in his catalogue, played an intimate, stripped down acoustic show, sharing personal stories and heartfelt poetry.
Back up in the parlour, Six Nights Alone from Illinois brought a familiar sound reminiscent of 500 Miles. They had a nice mix of old school country and punk, most likely influenced by greats like Cash, Waylon, Strummer and Rotten. They too were driven by the sounds of the pedal steel, from music vet Mark Oberfell. Let’s go back downstairs to the ballroom, where Todd Lipscomb and the Kentucky Struts were cranking out Americana-bred indie rock. Their sound made me think that this could be the result you would get if Wilco could go back in time and be Gram Parsons backing band. Meanwhile, back up in the lounge, Forrest and the boys of The Mudpies were cranking out classic rock and blues. Back up in the parlour, Veronica Grim was leading De Los Muertos through a mix of dark gothic punk rock, topped off with a few drops of western and Latin sounds. The Underground Saints from Pennsylvania finished the night up in the parlour, playing to a rather disappointing small crowd.
But the night belonged to 500 Miles. It was all about them and their new record, We’ve Built Up to NOTHING. They’ve been touring the last several years on the songs from their past two efforts, most notably, Sunshine In A Shotglass, and since that album’s release in 2005, a couple things have changed with the band. They’ve got two new full-time members; Elaina Brown on the keys and Noah Sugarman, who’s been a pretty good solo artist the past few years, on guitar. For the new album, they took their sound to even greater lengths with the addition of an orchestra, expanding on a sound we’ve all come to know and love. With help from the fiddle player and a two-person horn section last night, 500 Miles have certainly stepped up their game and seem to be a little closer on that golden road to success.
I’m sure most of the 500 fans all knew the bar would be raised for these new songs, but after last night’s performance (the first time I was hearing these new songs), I saw 500 Miles achieve much greater heights than I had expected. I really like the name of the album as well. What I take from it, is that they feel they have not yet reached their goals. Maybe they haven’t quite reached that place just yet, but they’ve put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into what they do over the past several years; and it seems like they’re enjoying it much more than ever. When I look back on the very first time I saw them perform, which was upstairs at the Poison Room (now Mainstay Rock Bar) to a crowd no more than thirty or forty at one of the CincyPunk festivals, I see that 500 Miles to Memphis have certainly built up to something.
Weekend of Local CD Releases
February 25th, 2010
Posted in Concerts, Local Music, New Music Releases
Rarely is there a time when a handful of some of Cincinnati’s finest musician’s are hosting releases parties all on the same weekend.
First, there’s 500 Miles to Memphis. Led by a Cash/Ramone-like Ryan Malott, the country-punk outfit recently released the highly-anticipated/long-awaited We’ve Built Up to NOTHING, which sees the addition of a backing orchestra to their sound this time around. They’re taking over the entire Southgate House this Friday, with a big list of bands like the Kentucky Struts, duppy a jamba, Shotgun Lover, Underground Saints, De Los Muertos, Six Nights Alone, The Mudpies and Paul K. I’ve heard that over a hundred tickets have already been sold, but there should be plenty left at the door. A hundred tickets may not sound like much, but keep in mind that most people buy their tickets at the door. Get there early, as I’m expecting a couple hundred more to show up. Doors open at 8 pm and the music begins at 9 pm.
That very same night, at Covington’s Mad Hatter, the young seven-piece rap-rock band, Small Time Crooks, are releasing their second full-length album, along with metal/hardcore six-piece, I Am the Messenger, who are releasing their second EP, Humans. They’re bringing along their friends Pilot Around the Stars, Let It Happen, All Out Best and Conditional Comprimise. Again, here’s another show that should be packed wall to wall. Doors open at 7 pm and it’s only $5 to get in.
Lastly, there’s Pop Empire. They’re a duo that I’m still trying to figure out, because the songs from their debut EP, Rainy Child, jump back and forth from garage blues, to indie rock to electro-synth pop. The band consists of newcomer Henrie Wilson and longtime local musician and producer, Cameron Cochran. Cam’s done everything from the solo acoustic singer/songwriter thing (Diary, A Days is one of my all-time favorite local releases), to working in and with The Lion’s Rampant, to leading The Sheds on a short-but-sweet ride with Chris Haubner. After hearing these new songs, it should be quite interesting to see how they translate in the live setting.
And as if the show couldn’t get anymore interesting, it certainly does indeed. Not only will the Southgate House’s Art Gallery feature the work of local artists, who were inspired by the songs of Pop Empire, but both The Seedy Seeds and The Lion’s Rampant will be performing. Did I mention this show is taking place in the parlour? Yeah, that’s right. Get there early, not just to check out the artwork upstairs, but you’re going to want to grab a good spot up close, as I’m sure this room will fill up fast. The art show starts at 8:30 pm, and the music is scheduled to begin around 9:30 pm. $5 for 21 and up, $8 for 18-20.
Make sure to keep The Lion’s Rampant on your mind too. They’ll be releasing their highly-anticipated/long-awaited debut full-length, It’s Fun To Do Bad Things, on Saturday, March 13 at the Mockbee with The Guitars, DJ Gerald and DJ Iceburg.
Riverbend Summer Concert Updates
February 25th, 2010
Posted in Concerts
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members Tom Petty and his Heartbreakers have just announced plans for their upcoming summer tour. The legendary heartland rock band from Gainesville, Florida who have churned out more than thirty hit singles, have revealed dates that include shows with Crosby, Stills and Nash, Joe Cocker, My Morning Jacket, the Drive-By Truckers and an appearance at Milwaukee’s Summerfest. They’re returning to Cincinnati’s Riverbend Music Center with the Drive-By Truckers on Thursday, July 15. Tickets go onsale to the public on Monday, March 15, but there’s a presale on Monday, March 8 at 10 am.
In other Riverbend news, tickets for Dave Matthews June 15 show with Robert Earl Keen go onsale to the public tomorrow morning at 10 am. Pavilion seats are priced at $70 plus fees, while the popular lawn ticket is priced at $40 plus fees. I can remember the very first Dave show I went to back in ‘97 at Riverbend, and pavilion seats were just $25. My how times have changed!
CincyPunk Festival Turns Nine
February 23rd, 2010
Posted in Concerts, Local Music, music festivals
CincyPunk Fest 9 is slowly but surely coming together. The event, which has raised $25,500 for local charities since 2005, is taking place Friday, April 9 and Saturday, April 10 at the Historic Southgate House in Newport, Kentucky. This year, proceeds will benefit the Animal Adoption Foundation and Cincinnati’s Friends of the Children.
All three stages at the Southgate House will be utilized for the event, featuring twenty bands each night. The event is $7 for those over twenty-one years old and $10 for those under twenty-one. More details for the event will be released exclusively through BrokenMic.com in the coming weeks.
For further information on the festival and its charities visit CincyPunk on MySpace, Animal Adoption Foundation and Friends of the Children.
State Radio: Not Just Your Average Rock Band
February 22nd, 2010
Posted in Concerts
It’s no secret that, for some, a life in rock and roll can result in a seemingly glorious road of excess, full of fame and fortune. Mainstream media would have you believe that the prettiest of rockstars often sleep in beds made of dollar bills, drive pimped out rides made of gold and have millions of friends. Unfortunately, far too many are driven over the edge and end up losing their lives because of their chosen profession. It’s sad that we live in such times, where a band with a good heart isn’t making all the headlines and covers of music magazines. Meet State Radio.
The Boston-based band was formed by Chad Urmston, formerly of Dispatch, who left the band at the height of its popularity in 2002. Later that same year, with friends Pete Halby, Chuck Fay and Mike Greenfield, they would form a band driven by a punk rock sound and political activism. However, soon after the debut release of the Flag of the Shiners EP, State Radio would go on hiatus due to Urmston’s throat surgery. When the time was right to regroup in 2004, the band was with a new drummer, Brian Sayers, who would ultimately leave the band in the next couple of years.
Although a few members have come and gone, and their sound has, at various times, focused more closely on styles of pop punk, reggae and ska, there is one thing that has always remained the same with this band; Urmston and his bandmate friends have found the way to remain grounded and close to their roots and ideals. In an industry where too many bands have songwriter’s write short, catchy jingles for them, State Radio are doing things on their own terms, speaking for themselves and sending out important messages to the masses. They even managed to sell out Madison Square Gardens in 2007, not an easy task by any means, especially for a band with very little mainstream popularity, with proceeds going to benefit Zimbabwe.
By creating a group called Calling All Crows, the band and their fans have racked up thousands of hours of community service spreading globally. They’re also working with Oxfam America’s Stoves for Sudan Project, where they hope to raise enough money for five-thousand stoves for five-thousand different women in Sudan. The members of the band have worked with Big Brothers Big Sisters and Amnesty International, they’ve ridden their bikes to gigs benefiting the environment, and their always hosting food and clothing drives at their shows looking to help out programs like the Learning Center for the Deaf.
Related show
Sollee and Moore’s Dear Companion Tour
February 20th, 2010
Posted in Concerts
A couple of good ol’ Kentucky boys done well. Ben Sollee, the acclaimed cellist who got his start with Abigail Washburn’s Sparrow Quartet (featuring banjo wiz Bela Fleck), has teamed up with Cold Spring native, Daniel Martin Moore, for one of the most exceptional musical collaborations I can think of in recent years. The duo recently kicked off their tour, which will take them all over the country, including shows at the South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas, and NPR’s World Cafe Live with David Dye in Philadelphia. They spent the day yesterday on Hamilton Avenue in Northside, for an intimate in-store performance at Shake-It Records and later packed the Northside Tavern just across the street.
They’re playing the songs off of their new record, entitled Dear Companion. Benefiting Appalachian Voices, the songs come from the issues facing mountaintop coal mining removal while inspiring to put a stop to it. The problem is most known in the Appalachian Mountains, where explosives are used to remove the mountaintops and dumping the excess rock and soil into valleys and hills. Studies have shown that by doin this, there are serious environmental and health impacts.
The album was written and recorded in 2009, and produced by none other than Jim James of My Morning Jacket, who also plays on a few tracks. They’ve assembled a full band, which includes Cheyenne Mize on the violin and guitar, and Dan Dorff on drums and piano. Familiar with the solo efforts of both artists but having not yet heard this new album, I wasn’t exactly sure what these songs would sound like. But any fan of either could’ve guessed it would bring a little of each’s sound and that it would surely be something special.
The foursome played a short but sweet set, Moore standing tall and still for most of the evening, while Cheyenne and Dorff kept the rotation going on their number of instruments, even seeing Sollee jump in on the drumkit at one point. Although the packed room made it difficult to see what each musician was doing with their fingers on their instruments, the main focus of this sound I was hearing for the first time appeared to be in the beautiful four-part vocal harmonies. What each musician brought to the stage complemented each other throughout, never too much of one thing, seemingly spread as close to perfect as possible. Moore with his signature soft-spoken voice and gentle plucking of his acoustic guitar strings, and Sollee bringing the blues and soul alive in both his voice and the way he played the cello.
Shows to Know in February
January 31st, 2010
Posted in Concerts
Wednesday, February 3
Cowboy Mouth’s Annual Rock and Roll Mardi Gras featuring Junior Brown
Southgate House (Ballroom)
Nick Oliveri (formerly of Queens of the Stone Age)
Southgate House (Parlour)
Thursday, February 4
Frontier Ruckus and Frontier Folk Nebraska
Southgate House (Ballroom)
Friday, February 5
Psychofest Hoedown from Hell II featuring Rumble Club, Death by Rodeo and Lost State of Franklin
Southgate House (Ballroom)
Days of the New, Calloused, Angry Throttle, Hydrashock and Stoning Mary
The Mad Hatter
Save Our Strays Benefit featuring Buckra, Nathan Holscher & the Ohio Five and Daughters & Sons
Northside Tavern
Saturday, February 6
RJD2, Kenan Bell and Happy Chichester
Southgate House (Ballroom)
Monday, February 8
Royal Bangs and Life Like
Northside Tavern
Friday, February 12
Lucero, Glossary and Dave Hause of the Loved Ones
Southgate House (Ballroom)
Jonathan Tyler & the Northern Lights and Grooveshire
Southgate House (Parlour)
Marcy Playground, The Flight Station, The Western, faceblind and Our Rising
The Mad Hatter
State Song and Slow Claw
Northside Tavern
Saturday, February 13
The Covington Insurance Plan benefiting Kevin Winterberg featuring Angels of Meth, Mala in Se, The Strongest Proof, Black Signal, Oso Bear, Mad Anthony, Future Strikes, De Los Muertos, Flags, The Brothers & the Sisters, Pete Stein of Truckstop Coffee and Chris Porter
Southgate House (Whole House)
Robert Earl Keen
Madison Theater
Fairmount Girls and The Harlequins
Northside Tavern
Monday, February 15
Fucked Up, Kurt Vile, Iron Age and Till Plains
Southgate House (Ballroom)
Tuesday, February 16
Ha Ha Tonka, The Shy Spots and Bootleg Rider
Southgate House (Parlour)
Dark Star Orchestra
Madison Theater
Thursday, February 18
Bear Hands and Come On Caboose
Southgate House (Parlour)
Friday, February 19
Dear Companion Tour featuring Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore
Northside Tavern
Saturday, February 20
Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band, The Five Dollar Pistols featuring Josh Dorsey and Forest Horn and the Whiskey Bent Valley Boys
Southgate House (Ballroom)
Arms Exploding’s Last Show with Anxiety High and Knife the Symphony
Southgate House (Parlour)
Snoop Dogg
Madison Theater
Wednesday, February 24
Peter Adams & the Nocturnal Collective, Apolcalypse Now and the Prohibitionists
Southgate House (Parlour)
Badfish, a tribute to Sublime
Bogart’s
Thursday, February 25
Saosin, Maylene & the Sons of Disaster and Anastello
The Mad Hatter
Friday, February 26
500 Miles to Memphis CD Release Show with the Kentucky Struts, duppy a jamba, Shotgun Lover, Underground Saints, De Los Muertos, Six Nights Alone, The Mudpies and Paul K
Southgate House (Whole House)
Small Time Crooks CD Release Party with I Am the Messenger, All Out Best and Let It Happen
The Mad Hatter
Saturday, February 27
Pop Empire CD Release with the Seedy Seeds and the Lions Rampant
Southgate House (Parlour)
Ani DiFranco
Madison Theater
