Irony is not a concept usually shared by international cultures. Case in point: cats.

The Western (internet) world shows its adoration for felines by churning out pointless LOLcat YouTube video after LOLcat YouTube video, gilding this love with a patina of wink-wink jokeyness, as if to say, "Sure, we obsess over and anthropomorphize these cute beasts that don't do very much, but since we're making a gag out of it, it's OK to openly enjoy it. This is how we've earned our pass."

Japan's Shonen Knife, on the other hand, has willingly dedicated an entire song to the same animals while keeping a straight face — a move that would definitely earn mockery if they were an American band. The 31-year-old Pop-Punk trio's "I Am a Cat" off 1993's Let's Knife is an autumnal, simple tune where the narrator steps into an astral "timeless zone" and finds a cat's whiskers and ears. After attaching them to herself, she observes, "In a moment, I become a sweet little cat/And I dance on a flying saucer."

It's silly and a bit dumb, of course, but the total absence of irony —especially since this comes from an underground Rock outfit — is a true gift. Shonen Knife has long championed frivolous music about frivolous subjects, and the trio’s childlike earnestness yields great charm.

With that being said, it's somewhat surprising that Kurt Cobain of all folks supported Shonen; but, hey, even the guy who wrote "Rape Me" needed some relief from pain and aggression, too (see: heroin addiction).

Shonen Knife's tour behind its new album, Pop Tune, comes to the Ballroom space inside the Taft Theatre downtown tonight. Showtime is 8:30 p.m.; doors open at 7:30 p.m. Opening the show is red-headed sibling rockers White Mystery (from Chicago) and Cincinnati greats The Harlequins. Tickets are $13.

Here's the video for the title track off of Shonen Knife's new LP.

Cincinnati crew The Ohms have built an impressive career over the past decade-plus, starting out in the ’00s as a popular draw on the “Jam band” circuit as Four Ohms, before shifting gears and developing a surprisingly unique twist on the Rock-meets-Reggae hybridization, a pairing that everyone from Eric Clapton, The Clash and The Police to modern players like No Doubt, The Aggrolites and Matisyahu has flirted with and/or embraced since the ’70s.

Changing the band name to simply The Ohms a few years back (and garnering some national industry attention), the now stripped-down three-piece is in top fighting shape, sounding better than ever, as their recently released second album, Press On, proves beyond a shadow of a spliff. They’re a lean, mean skankin’ machine with a fresh coat of Modern Rock paint glazed atop.

Press On succeeds through careful and crafty, yet very natural-feeling, mixology — the Rock and Reggae elements never get in each other’s way, feel forced or fight for space in The Ohms’ groove-driven mix, a testament to the musicians’ abilities as arrangers and writers. The title track, for example, sounds like a perfectly natural jam session between Green Day and Rancid. A minute into the track, the Punk/Pop-like drive drops to a head-bobbing flow of buoyant, vintage Reggae rhythms, ’70s-styled songcraft and Ska horns.

The album continues with that basic blueprint throughout, but few tracks are predictable and there are variations galore. “Vampire” is a voodoo strut that explodes into a huge, engulfing chorus, while elsewhere the band tinkers with the full range of Reggae sounds, styles and approaches (from Roots to Ska to Dub, grunting toasting to full-voiced, highly melodic melodies) and welds them together with the musicians’ excellent grasp of Classic Rock and top-notch musicianship.

Reggae and Ska remain two of the more maligned genres in music (usually unfairly … and it always comes back around), but The Ohms have such an addictive energy, even the most hardened “Pfft — Reggae sucks” protestor won’t be able to resist bobbing along to the contagious beats and rhythm.

Fresh on the heels of the release of Press On, The Ohms have been focused on this weekend's big Ohmstead music festival at Hannon’s Camp America (hannonscampamerica.com) near Oxford.

Ohmstead is now entering its 11th year, which certainly puts the event amongst some of the longest running artist-built festivals of its kind in the region. For this weekend’s (Friday and Saturday, plus a little Sunday morning/afternoon action) Ohmstead blowout, The Ohms have joined forces with Wham Bam Thank You Jam fest to help manage and operate a big “Ohmstead Wham Bam Thank You Jam” conglomo-fest, which once again features an impressively diverse lineup of inventive music makers, mostly from across Ohio.

The multi-act festival — with The Ohms performing both nights, as has become tradition — presents everything from progressive Psychedelic Jam Rock (Cincy’s Mr. Brown’s Mysterious Sounds), Kent, Ohio-based Ambient/Electronic/Industrial musician Pyrosonic, smooth acoustic guitarist Brian Henke (from Bay Village, Ohio) and fellow Reggae squad Soul Rebels (from straight outta Yellow Springs), promising Cincy Alt/Psych/Garage/Rock foursome Lemon Sky, retro-tinged local rockers Tattered Roots, popular touring “Hippie-Hop Jam Rock” outfit Boogie Matrix (Toledo) and Northern Ohio Jam band Aliver Hall, which showcases former Four Ohms member Alex Hall on guitar and vocals. Other artists slated to appear include Dayton-based Phish tribute band Oh Kee Pa, Dayton Funk rockers Magic Jackson, Oxford area Blues band Bad Men on a Mission and Nigerian-born/Cincy-based AfroBeat champ Baoku Moses.

Here is the most recent 2012 Wham Bam Thank U Jam and Ohmstead lineup (with "city of origin"), posted by the WhamBam folks (who add that attendees should check the info booth because times will "likely change"):

Friday

3pm - Trench Foot - Dayton, Ohio
4pm - Tony Herdman and Tracy Sax - Kettering, Ohio
5pm - Gild the Lily - Dayton, Ohio
6pm - Mr. Brown’s Mysterious Sounds - Cincinnati, Ohio
7pm - Brown Street Breakdown - Dayton, Ohio
8pm - Tattered Roots - Cincinnati, Ohio
9pm - Subterranean House Band - Dayton, Ohio
10pm - Prophets Mire - Dayton, Ohio
11pm - Magic Jackson - Dayton, Ohio
12:30am - The Ohms - Cincinnati, Ohio
2:30am - Pyrosonic - Kent, Ohio

Saturday (in the Barn)

10am - Brian Henke - Bay Village, Ohio
Noon - Andyman Hopkins Band - Cincinnati, Ohio
1pm - Bad Men on a Mission - College Corner, Ohio
2pm - Soul Rebels - Yellow Springs, Ohio
3pm - Elementree Presents - Cincinnati, Ohio
4pm - Nine False Suns - Dayton, Ohio
5pm - M 8 7 - Dayton, Ohio

Saturday (Wham & Bam Stages)

6pm - S O L - Piqua, Ohio
7pm - Happy Lemmy - Birmingham, Alabama
8pm - Lemon Sky - Cincinnati, Ohio
Fire Celebration Ceremony - at Dusk / Sunset - in Middle Earth
9pm - Aliver Hall - Akron, Ohio
10pm - Oh Kee Pa (Phish trib) - Dayton, Ohio
11:30pm - Boogie Matrix - Toledo, Ohio
1am - The Ohms - Cincinnati, Ohio
2:30am - Baoku & the Image Afro Beat Band - Cincinnati, Ohio
2:30am - Pyrosonic - Kent, Ohio - In the Barn!

Sunday (in the Barn)

10am - Tracy Sax Therapy - Kettering, Ohio
Noon - Steev Inglish - London, England
1pm - The Finders - Cincinnati, Ohio
2pm - Troll - Cincinnati, Ohio

Three-day passes are only $35. Visit whambamthankujam.com for info on how/where to buy tickets, the full rundown of performer links and a list of the various on-site vendors, plus perks like “Ohio’s Largest Fire Sculpture” and camping opportunities.

For even more details, as well as info on The Ohms’ new Press On release, visit www.ohmsmusic.com. Here's a sample of the new material.

Il Volo — the popular Italian Opera trio from Sicily — features three teens with tenor voices so strong, they got America’s attention after one of the best guest performances in the history of American Idol, singing "O Sole Mio" last year. They formed in 2009 and were received very well in their native country, performing with some of the biggest international superstars in their short history. The group consists of Piero Barone, Ignazio Boschetto and Gianluca Ginoble. They are now set for their second U.S. tour which comes through Cincinnati tomorrow (Friday) night.

Il Volo is produced by long time industry veteran Tony Renis, who discovered the boys two years ago along with Grammy-winning producer Humberto Gatica (Michael Bublé, Josh Groban and Celine Dion).

CityBeat caught up with Gianluca Ginoble this week by phone to discuss his love of touring and how much he enjoys getting to do what he loves every day. He is just learning English but was able to provide a little insight into to the band’s grueling tour schedule. Check out Il Volo at Riverbend's PNC Pavilion on Friday.

CityBeat: I know you were introduced to opera from family members growing up in Italy. How important is family tradition to you?

Gianluca Ginoble: My family is the most important thing because my Grandpa is my inspiration. It was him that introduced me to this kind of music. But I love others as well, like Michael Buble and Frank Sinatra. I love Opera, but I also I love other kinds of music too. To me family is the most important thing.

CB: You guys are going to start a long tour being away from home. Is it hard being on the road being away from friends and family or what is the hardest part for you?

GG: When I am home, I can’t wait to do another tour because this is now my life. For me, it is like funny work because this is my passion. I am doing what I love to do, but when I am on tour I can’t wait to come back to my house and my home because I miss the family, my Grandpa. My Grandma died six months ago and for me it was an amazing pain. He was very important for me.

CB: I am sorry to hear that. Are there any places on the tour in the United States that you are specifically looking forward to playing, the location or the venue?

GG: Yes, yes, yes. My favorite city is Los Angeles. New York as well, but Los Angeles is the city of the dreams and the star, the Walk of Fame, the Oscars. For me it is the best city.

CB: What has been your rehearsal process for the tour? What has that been like for you?

GG: We have prepared with eight or nine hour rehearsals daily.

CB: Every day?

GG: Yes, because this is our first concert and we are preparing. When we have the soundcheck before the concert it is just 20 minutes or 30 minute,s so we have major rehearsals to get ready.

CB: How do you take care of your voices?

GG: Yes always, our voices are the most important thing.

CB: Do you ever see the band crossing over to pop music or do you think you will stay with Opera?

GG: I don’t know. We are open to many things. We did an American tour and it was wonderful, amazing because there were teenagers everywhere and in the U.S., in Miami, Los Angeles, New York and this is beautiful because it was our goal and this is a dream come true.

CB: Where do you see yourself or the band in 10 more years?

GG: I don’t know. I hope all this can continue in this way but life is unpredictable.

CB: What is your favorite song to sing and perform?

GG: "Smile," a Charlie Chaplin song.

CB: What can the fans look forward to in Cincinnati at the show?

GG: It is going to be a very beautiful show with more surprises. We have changed some things and I think it is going to be amazing. We have three new songs, which are a surprise.

CB: How do stay connected to your fans with Facebook or Twitter?

GG: Always, always. I update my fans, our fans. I am always doing “Greetings from …" I upload the pictures.

CB: What are you looking forward to the most on the tour?

GG: The most beautiful thing is to meet the fans. When I look at the people and they are happy and when they listen to our singing and we can make them happy, it is just beautiful.

The Louisville natives are known to play a lengthy set, which appeals to most people so long as you’re either a baby boomer or on some sort of mind-altering substance. On Sunday night in Columbus at the LC Pavilion, it’s possible nearly every person was one or the other. That or maybe we all just came together to appreciate what the Indie Rock jam band had to offer.

“Is that Band of Horses?”  

Unfortunately, they weren’t really anything to write home about. A bit on the boring side, the band showed the same amount, if not less, energy than any other given southern Indie Rock band. I appreciated the hits, like “Is There a Ghost” and “The Funeral” as much as the next guy, but there was some sort of intangible barrier, either coming from my point of view or theirs that made the whole thing not as special. I guess they were leaving that up to their “heroes,” My Morning Jacket. And so were we.

Roughly two-and-a-half hours and about 20 songs later and somehow everyone seemed lost in time, concerning themselves only with embracing every goddamn moment — My Morning Jacket included. Deeming us “beautiful fucking people,” James made us feel like there was no other purpose for us than to be standing right there along with him.

And just when we thought it was all over, My Morning Jacket came out one last time for a second encore and played “Steam Engine.” The finale was meant to be, embodying our current state of being perfectly. Relishing in every moment, we went to some kind of church. And it ain’t over to Jim James sings.

First let me say that I'm not what you would call a huge Olympics fan. This isn't an essay on sports. I'll tune in occasionally for things like basketball, soccer and Brazilian women's beach volleyball (LOTS of Brazilian women's beach volleyball), but it's hardly Must-See-TV for me every four years. If I had more patience, I'd probably watch more — but researching how the scoring works in water polo (and where they hide their horses) kind of takes the fun out of things.

I do love the drama of sports. I grew up the music nerd who didn't like sports because it was for jocks. My stance softened thanks to the 1999 Cincinnati Reds. Living just a few blocks away from the old Cinergy Field, I probably went to 50 home games that year — paid five bucks for a cheap "Top 6" seat (before they'd stop you from moving closer if there were open seats, which there usually were). Some of the dramatics of that season (cut short by a devastating one game playoff loss to the Mets) re-made me into the sports fan I was as a 10 year old.

The way drama in sports moved me reminded me (and still does) of the way music moves me. Though quite different experiences (sports is "thrill of victory/agony of defeat" exciting, while music moves me to my very core, caresses my heart, soothes my pain, gets me pumped up, etc.), they both give me a somewhat similar tingle in my brain.

As this year's Olympics progressed, I began to notice a lot of complaints about NBC's "tape delayed" coverage, whereby the network would hold back all the key, shining (mostly American athlete-oriented) moments for its prime-time broadcast. Of course, as pretty much every person with the ability to communicate online noted, this meant hearing that, say, Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt just made Olympic history … then turning on NBC to hear "tune in at 9 p.m. to find out how!"

Anyone with access to a radio, TV with channels other than NBC, a computer, smartphone or an excitable Olympics superfan BFF usually found out what happened up to 10 hours ahead of time. In some ways, I felt bad for the piling-on of NBC's Olympic events coverage. I mean, they did broadcast hours upon hours of live footage from London on their multiple Olympics platforms (iPad apps, Android apps, websites, additional channels, etc.).

But some people are busy, work strenuous jobs (without access to the aforementioned fancy devices) and want to come home, have some dinner, maybe smoke a doobie and THEN see what happened earlier at the Olympics. I'd be curious if anyone was actually able to avoid all spoilers — every time someone won a medal, I received a "news update" alert on my smartphone or would find out instantly on a British news website or within my Twitter or Facebook feed.

So I cut NBC the slightest of slack for fouling up some of the tape-delayed broadcast decisions (but there was no excuse for promoting Today show interviews with "new gold medalists" right before viewers actually saw said gold medalist win the top prize, something NBC did multiple times). If you really wanted to see an event live, you could do so.

The same can be said for the Closing Ceremonies, which streamed live on the Olympics many media platforms. But when it came time for editing it all down to a tight two-and-a-half hour or so prime-time broadcast, NBC had to cut some material out of the Closing Ceremony to make it fit and leave room for McDonald's  and Coke commercials.

During the Opening Ceremonies, NBC shamefully cut away to show Ryan Seacrest interview Michael Phelps instead of airing the ceremony's tribute to the 52 victims of the July 7, 2005, terrorist attacks in London.

There's editing for time and then there's just rude ethnocentrism. If New York City hosted the Olympics and the BBC cut away from the broadcast to show Simon Cowell interview legendary British track cyclist Chris Hoy, I wouldn't be shocked if the U.S. immediately began discussions about when to start the bombing of London.

Thankfully, nothing quite that insensitive occurred during the Closing Ceremonies.

The Closing Ceremonies piqued my interest the most of all of the Olympic happenings, mostly because I'm a proud Anglophile when it comes to music. Of my favorite artists ever, I'd be shocked if half weren't from the U.K. (if not more).

So I was fairly excited when I heard that the Closing Ceremonies would be titled "A Symphony of British Music" (look, you can already buy a CD) and focus primarily on England's greatest export, alongside comedy (which was spotlighted cleverly in both the opening and closing events) and Cadbury Creme Eggs. (I was only "fairly" excited because these things can often be cheesier than a Super Bowl halftime show with Up With People)

I had a slightly busy Sunday (well, busy enough that I couldn't watch stuff on TV or online all day), so I checked a handful of performances from the Olympics live stream, figuring I'd be able to catch the whole thing later.

There were some great moments. The John Lennon/"Imagine" salute was touching in a pure, unforced and restrained manner (not much else was, but that's not what ceremonial, once-in-the-lifetime, music-driven ragers should  be about, especially in London).

It was interesting to see athletes from other countries singing along to Oasis' biggest hit, "Wonderwall," in seemingly their own languages (not sure how Noel Gallagher felt about his little bro's band Beady Eye playing it, though; Noel did turn down a chance to participate).

The unfussy cover of Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here" was serviceable, but gets bonus points for bridging a generational gap by bringing together hot new singer/songwriter Ed Sheeran and RIchard Jones from young Brit band The Feeling with PInk Floyd drummer Nick Mason and Genesis guitarist Mike Rutherford.

Meanwhile, the only thing missing from Eric Idle's perfectly nonsensical performance of "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" was a chorus line of singers nailed to crucifixes (a la Monty Python's Life of Brian, the film in which it first appeared).

And, cheesy as it may have been, Freddie Mercury (in video projection/hologram-ish form) leading the stadium through a chant proved he is STILL the best frontman in Rock, even in death.

There were also, as is to be excepted, several cringe worthy moments.

The Spice Girls were a big deal for a few minutes, but did they deserve to perform more than one song at a global event like the Olympics? What exactly did they give the world besides a lady-friend for one of the planet's (former) greatest soccer players? I know, I know — it was a "rare" reunion (though it feels like they have "rare reunions" ever six months or so). I kept hoping for a five-olde-timey-taxi pile-up as they zoomed around the performance area at seemingly dangerous speeds.

Singer Jessie J must now be bigger than Princess Diana in the U.K., because she was able to perform multiple songs as well, like her big hit "Price Tag," showing the U.K.'s contribution to crappy Pop music, and "We Will Rock You" with Roger Taylor and Brian May, presumably because Paul Rodgers either wasn't available, passed away recently or refused to wear a nude, bedazzled unitard.

Ms. J also jammed with the artists during the segment where the London Olympics showed the world that there are indeed black people in the U.K., though Taio Cruz and Tinie Tempah are essentially carbon-copies of crappy American R&B/Pop singer/rappers. They did do a fun, mercifully short cover of the Bee Gees's "You Should Be Dancing," which probably pumped up views of the Bee Gees' Wikipedia page thanks to all of us who could have sworn the trio was from Australia (they were born in the U.K., moved to Australia, then back to the England where their career kicked off in earnest … in case you don't get Wikipedia).

There were a few glaring omissions from the parade of British Music stars, but the ceremony director gets a pass for that. How do you fit a century of music into three hours? Still, I could have done with seeing The Cure play (anything but "Killing an Arab") or New Order do a Joy Division/New Order mini-set or even Def Leppard (at least!) representing the influential New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement in lieu of Russell Brand singing a Willy Wonka tune and miming "I Am the Walrus."  

And, hey, remember how Britain co-invented Punk Rock? Beside awkwardly copping "London Calling" as a sort of unofficial anthem (before people apparently listened to the lyrics) and a mention of designer Vivienne Westwood, Punk Rock wasn't very big in the U.K., I guess. And Fatboy Slim apparently invented the British rave scene and U.K. dance music (while living inside a giant inflatable octopus).

Finally, in the spirit of mixing British humor and music, it would have been hilarious if George Michael would have appeared with former Wham! mate Andrew Ridgeley clasped around his leg ("I let go once — never again!").

The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Sex Pistols, Kate Bush and others reportedly turned down invites to be involved in the ceremony, though at least most were given props during the ceremony (Bowie's "Fashion" soundtracked the tribute to British fashion through the years, while a remix of Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill" was used as the music for a dazzling dance number spotlighting the tune).

The biggest blunder of the Closing Ceremonies, though, came once again courtesy of NBC's prime time broadcast.

I'm an editor and I understand that sometimes you can't fit every single thing you want into the tiny box given to you; tough calls must be made sometimes. 

But what network exec's 14-year-old niece was given control over the U.S. broadcast's final cut on NBC? Whoever made the tough decisions made a few seriously bad ones and the internet has been screaming about how much it SUCKED ever since.

The Kate Bush-soundtracked performance was cut, but I get that. Kate's not a household name in the States. I caught rockers Muse — who wrote and recorded the official song of this year's Olympics, "Survival" — and can forgive that one too — their performance was a bit lackluster and the song has an oddly ominous tone, like something Mussolini would have commissioned had the Olympics ever come to Italy during his reign.

Ray Davies' performance might have been spared if he'd playing "You Really Got Me" or some other U.S. FM radio staple. But Davies could play nothing but his gorgeous ode to London, "Waterloo Sunset," because it was the perfect time and place for the beloved British hit to be performed.

(Click ahead to the 1:35 mark to see it, until NBC removes it)

When I realized NBC cut "Waterloo Sunset," that's when my head-cocked bemusement turned to "WTF!" annoyance. A peek at the internet revealed I was not alone (I think the Davies cut was the hardest for most true Rock fans to take).

That is, until the end of the broadcast.

The absolute worst cut from NBC's primetime broadcast was the deletion of The Who, the perfect British band to provide a grand finale. If you were watching live, you saw the extinguishing of the Olympic flame and then, while Bob Costas was allowed to blather on about nothing over the allotted air time a day or two earlier, causing the show to "run over," Costas signed off with a very quick, "We'll be back from Olympic Stadium in about an hour for the London closing party featuring The Who. But stay tuned now for a full episode of Animal Practice, the new NBC comedy presented commercial free."

The network switched over to Monkey Doctor (or whatever it's called) and then followed it with local news.

THEN The Who's impressive eight-minute medley — touching on proudly anthemic and quite British tunes like "My Generation" — was allegedly aired, an hour after prime-time programming had ended. Pete, Roger and their ringers kicked things off with "Baba O'Reily," with its perfectly dramatic, almost always spine-tingling opening keyboard riff, which would have made a perfect segue way from the flame being put out. Instead — Hospitals for Monkeys (or whatever it was called), commercial free!

I left NBC as soon as Marcus Monkeypants MD started and ultimately fell asleep, mumbling to myself about how I'll never watch another episode of America's Got Talent or something like that. Then I spent today looking up what I missed on YouTube and other sites … when available. There was some good footage posted for a few minutes, but NBC and the Olympics yanked them faster than Fred Willard in a movie theater.

The nbcolympics.com site DID have The Who segment up by this evening. But they called "Baba O'Riley" by its not-actual-title, "Teenage Wasteland."

See — 14-year-olds are running NBC!

Ultimately, it's not that big of a deal — today there was another sad, tragic, inexplicable shooting in public near Texas A&M University. We STILL have not seen what Paul Ryan's abs look like. And NBC says the Olympic games were the most watched in history; one ad exec went so far as to suggest the high ratings in the U.S. were BECAUSE of the weird tape-delay approach. It created excitement (not hair-pulling-out frustration?).

So keep it in perspective and start getting ready for the 2016 Olympic games in Brazil. I'm already plotting how to watch it all as it should be watched — on a live stream, on Brazilian TV or in person (CityBeat, I'm volunteering my services). Because you just know NBC is going to shoot 90% of it from "above the waist." Some of those amazing booties over there are definitely NSF-NBC.

This weekend's big Western & Southern Open tennis tourney (kicking off at 10 a.m. tomorrow at the Linder Family Tennis Center in Mason) won't have world-class champs like Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova (who've both dropped out in the past couple of days).

But the event WILL feature several world-class local music champs who will provide tunes between matches throughout the entire event. (Oh, and a bunch of really good tennis-ball hitters will still be showing up.)

Think tennis and music should never mix? Well, Bieber clearly gets it (see pic above). And you obviously haven't seen this.

Here's the schedule of musical acts (presented in conjunction with CityBeat), for those planning to attend. (Schedule courtesy of Game Day Communications).

Saturday, Aug. 11: Jake Evans (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.)

Sunday, Aug. 12: Michael McIntire (10:45 to 11:30 a.m); Michael McIntire and Marmalade Brigade (12-2 p.m.)

Monday, Aug. 13: Andyman Hopkins (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.); Brad Loans of The Sundresses (12-2 p.m.); Andyman Hopkins (5 to 7 p.m.)

Tuesday, Aug. 14: Carole Walker Luley (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.); Hickory Robot (12 to 2 p.m.); Jeremy Pinnell & the 55’s (5 to 7 p.m.)

Wednesday, Aug. 15: Sean Geil of The Tillers (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.); The Cla-Zels (12 to 2 p.m.); Blake Taylor of 46 Long (5 to 7 p.m.)

Thursday, Aug. 16: Shiny Old Soul (10:45 to 11:30 a.m. and 12 to 2 p.m.); Young Heirlooms (5 to 7 p.m.)

Friday, Aug. 17: Colin Shoff (10:45 to 11:30 a.m.); Faux Frenchmen (12 to 2 p.m.); The Shivering Timbers (5 to 7 p.m.)

Saturday, Aug. 18: The Sunburners (6 to 8 p.m.)

Sunday, Aug. 19: Newburg Trio (10 a.m. to 12 p.m.)

In other Tennis/music news, Tennis — one of Meghan McCain's favorite bands — is playing the MidPoint Music Festival on Sept. 29. Tickets on sale now! (See what I did there?)

Tonight's free, all-ages MidPoint Indie Summer concert on Fountain Square is certainly one of the most eclectic ever … and may turn out to be one of the best ever.

Exhibit A: Openers Sidewalk Chalk at 7 p.m.

Chicago's Sidewalk Chalk have opened for De La Soul and ?uestlove, and Lupe Fiasco majorly shouted-them-out on his Twitter and Facebook pages. The band is described as "a hip-hop, soul, jazz octet that consists of a singer, emcee, drummer, bass, trombone, trumpet, keys player, and a tap dancer."

Here's the music video for Sidewalk Chalk's "Water Song" from the group's album Corner Store.  


Exhibit B: Middle-slot performers Kansas Bible Company at 8:15 p.m.

From nearby Goshen, Ind. (currently working out of Nashville), KBC has wowed Cincy crowds a few times in the past year or so. The dynamic Soul/Jazz/Rock band trumps Sidewalk Chalk's mere eight-person membership, featuring "a five-man horn line, three guitars, two percussionists and one bass."

Dig this video for the great KBC tune "How to Build A Planet" from their album Ad Astra Per Aspera (rough translation: A rough road leads to the stars).



Exhibit C: Headliners A Place to Bury Strangers at 9:30 p.m.

Another frequent visitor to Cincy, the NYC-based APTBS are like a more abrasive, modern update of Jesus & Mary Chain's Psychocandy album. Guitar nuts can also bathe in some cool guitar sounds courtesy of the band's own line of effect pedals. (Read Reyan Ali's interview with the band for CityBeat from this past March here.)

Here is a video from A Place to Bury Strangers' recently released Worship album, "You Are The One." (Mildly NSFW clip.)

By all accounts (from people who actually attended or performed), last month’s huge Bunbury Music Festival was one of the best-run fests of its kind this area has ever seen. Organizer Bill Donabedian no doubt scored some tips from the operators of the big annual Blues celebration, the volunteer-driven Cincy Blues Fest, which has been doing the “well-run music festival” thing at Sawyer Point Park along the riverfront for many years now.

This weekend, the Cincy Blues Fest — one of the finest Blues events in the Midwest — returns to Sawyer Point to celebrate its 20th anniversary. That's a remarkable two decades of providing Greater Cincinnati live music lovers with some of the finest Blues being made locally, regionally and nationally, a rare and impressive achievement for any music festival.

This year’s main stage national headliners are especially strong — Webb Wilder on Friday and Duke Robillard on Saturday — but the Cincy Blues Fest always has a ton of interesting and engaging artists performing throughout the fest’s multiple stages.

Aside from the lineup featuring a few higher quality headliners than the past couple of years (like Robillard, Wilder, Trampled Under Foot, Super Chikan, Sista Monica, etc.), this year’s 20th anniversary celebration isn’t really being overblown, likely because the Cincy Blues Society and the army of volunteers that work the fest always do such an amazing job running the event; it’s already quite special, no matter what birthday the fest is celebrating. 

One of my favorite elements of the Blues Fest is its undying support for our local players and singers. This year, Cincy Blues Challenge winners Chris Yakopcic and the Noah Wotherspoon Band have main-stage slots (they’ll also go to Memphis this winter to compete for Cincinnati in the International Blues Challenge). Yakopcic performs at 5:45 p.m. Friday, while Wotherspoon and Co. play at the same time Saturday (following a band of students associated with the Blues in the Schools program, for which the fest raises money). 

The three side stages — always creatively programmed — have a heavy local presence. Friday, visit the “Blues: The Next Generation” stage for sets by younger area acts like the Wade Baker Trio, Brian Keith Wallen Band, Scotty Bratcher and (again!) Noah Wotherspoon and his band. The “Next Gen” stage starts at 5:15 p.m. Saturday.

Friday "The Next Generation of Blues" stage lineup

5:15 p.m. Wade Baker Trio

6:20 p.m. Jellico Motel

7:05 p.m. Brian Keith Wallen Band

8:10 p.m. Carson Diersing Band

9:25 p.m. Scotty Bratcher

10:40 p.m. Noah Wotherspoon Band

As the name suggests, the St. Vincent DePaul Local Stage is chock full of local talent. Friday, the stage features Bad Men on a Mission, Them Bones, the Doug Hart Band, Leroy Ellington’s Blues Band and Blue Sacrifice.

And perhaps the fest’s most notable and renowned side stage, the unique Boogie Woogie Piano Hall of Fame Stage, on Saturday will feature appearances by Jimmy Rogers, Todd Hepburn, Liz Pennock & Dr. Blues and Ricky Nye, plus players from across the planet. The Boogie Woogie stage closes out with a “grand finale jam” just before midnight.

Saturday Boogie Woogie Piano Hall of Fame Stage lineup

4:30 p.m. Jimmy Rogers

5:10 p.m. Todd Hepburn

5:50 p.m. Liz Pennock & Dr. Blues

6:50 p.m. Ricky Nye

7:40 p.m. Mark Braun

8:30 p.m. Rob Rio

9:20 p.m. Cynthia Girtley

10:10 p.m. Bob Seeley

11:00 p.m. Fabrice Eulry

11:50 p.m. Grand Finale Jam

Here are the lineups for the Budweiser Main Stage this weekend:

Friday Budweiser Main Stage lineup
   
5:45-6:45 p.m. Chris Yakopcic

7:00-8:15 p.m. Super Chikan

8:30-10:00 p.m. Sista Monica

10:15-11:45 p.m. Webb Wilder

Saturday Budweiser Main Stage lineup

5:00-5:30 p.m. Blues in the School (BITS) Band

5:45-6:45 p.m. Noah Wotherspoon Band

7:00-8:15 p.m. Southern Hospitality

8:30-10:00 p.m. Trampled Under Foot

10:15-11:45 p.m. Duke Robillard

Tickets are $20 each day (two-day passes are available Friday at the gates for $30), or grab yours early through brownpapertickets.com for a $5 discount. Or you can join the Cincy Blues Society (cincyblues.org), the creators and managers of Cincy Blues Fest, to receive an even deeper discount.

Be sure to pick up a copy of this week's CityBeat, which includes a pull-out guide for the Cincy Blues Fest, with artist bios, schedules and more. For further ticket info, updates, details on the new Cincy Blues Fest mobile app and much more, visit cincybluesfest.org.

Welsh musician Gruff Rhys is bringing his current unique (and brief) tour to Cincinnati's Contemporary Arts Center tomorrow (Thursday). The show starts at 8 p.m. Click here to grab your tickets.

Those attending the tour’s stop at the CAC will also be treated to an extra rare bonus — Rhys’ Neon Neon project-mate and Cincinnati native Boom Bip (aka Bryan Hollon, who now works from out of the West Coast) will be joining Gruff onstage after the main performance for a one-of-a-kind DJ set.

Rhys’ band Super Furry Animals released its major label debut, Rings Around the World, in 2001 and the group appeared to be a successor to the throne occupied by fading superstars like Blur and Oasis. The album (following SFA’s excellent debut, Fuzzy Logic, and a trio of experimental-oriented albums put out by king-maker Alan McGee’s Creation Records) put a brilliant, creative spin on “Brit Pop,” highlighted by fascinating sounds between the grooves, but also an extraordinary knack for writing incredibly potent melodies. Rings contained several hit-songs-in-waiting and did well in the U.K., but never fully grabbed the ears of the U.S. mainstream like a few of the band’s predecessors did.

While some artists would have simply gone back and cleaned up/out the sound of their potential breakthrough to appeal more to the mainstream, it soon became clear that Rhys and the Furries weren’t interested in pandering. The band had always been underlined by a progressive, adventurous streak (early works embraced Electronic and Ambient music, among other approaches) and it was evident that the opportunity to crossover or become a massive success was less important to Rhys and Co. than following their own creative whims. (By the mid-’00s, SFA had left the Sony family for the artist-friendlier confines of Rough Trade Records).

Rhys’ work outside of the Furries’ domain has been even more exploratory. Rhys’ eclectic solo albums have contained songs sung alternately in Welsh, English and Spanish. And he’s a huge fan of collaboration, working with artists like Mogwai, Sparklehorse, De La Soul, Gorillaz, Simian Mobile Disco and Brazilian artist Tony da Gatorra, to name a few. One of his most celebrated collaborations has been with Boom Bip; the pair’s Neon Neon project has been widely acclaimed, earning a Mercury Prize nomination in 2008 for the album Stainless Style (a loose concept piece about the life of John De Lorean).

Rhys’ current project/tour is a follow-up to Separado!, a feature film/multimedia venture during which film crews followed the musician as his “investigative concert tour” traveled through South America. The film followed Rhys on his journey to learn more about his “long lost, guitar-playing, poncho-wearing uncle, Rene Griffiths.” Given his musical output, it was fitting that Rhys’ intellectual and creative curiosity had led him down such another unique path.

Here's the trailer for Rhys' "psychedelic western musical," Separado!

Rhys’ current “investigative tour” is another adventure in genealogy and travel, as the artist (again trailed by a film crew for a planned movie sequel/music/prose/photo project) journeys through North America to find the burial site of John Evans, another distant relative who allegedly left Wales in the late 1700s on a quest to verify the legend of a Welsh-speaking tribe of Native Americans.

Rhys put this call out to anyone with info that could help: “Gruff urges anyone with clues regarding Evans’s unknown burial place; imaginary volcanos; wandering tribes of Welsh Speakers, or lingering river reptiles to come to the shows, where their help with his investigations will be appreciated and featured in the movie.” You might even make the film's final cut just by showing up and checking out the show.

Rhys’ performance will include music, discussion, his cutting humor and more. As the trailer above suggests, and anyone who’s seen SFA live knows (the band's criminally under-attended show at the Southgate House many years ago was one of my all-time favorite concerts), don't go into one of Gruff’s appearances with too many expectations because, most likely, they’ll be blown out of the water.