Hard Rock group Alter Bridge was formed in Orlando in 2004 by Creed members Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall and Scott Phillips after a tense Creed tour. Adding lead singer/rhythm guitarist Myles Kennedy (also a touring/recording collaborator with Slash), Alter Bridge quickly became more than a side project when Creed's break-up was announced a little later that year. Though Creed has reconstituted, Alter Bridge has remained a full-time entity. The band released its third studio album (on its third label) in 2010, ABIII, a conceptual work dealing with issues of faith that spawned the group's biggest hit yet, “Isolation.” Alter Bridge are currently on the Carnival of Madness tour (with Theory of a Deadman, Black Stone Cherry and others), which comes to the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville this Friday, one of the tour's only free stops, at Cardinal Stadium (required fair admission is $10; find details here). CityBeat recently spoke with Mark Tremonti about the band’s writing style, solo careers and that "other" band, Creed.

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EDITOR'S NOTE: This year's 20th anniversary edition of Lollapalooza in Chicago's Grant Park was once again a live, breathing, three-day mixtape featuring star artists (Coldplay, Eminem, Foo Fighters), established performers, cult heroes and up-and-comers. Local writer Leyla Shokoohe attended her very first Lollapalooza this past weekend and agreed to write about the experience for CityBeat. Below is her report on Day 1 as well as video from some of the performances mentioned, mostly from Lollapalooza's YouTube page. Keep an eye on this space for Day 2 and 3 dispatches soon.

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Before its current successful run of reunion concerts across the globe, The Afghan Whigs played its final live show at a New York City club called Hush on Sept. 29, 1999. But that was a private concert. The Whigs last public appearance was Sept. 25, 1999, at Cincinnati's Bogart's with special guests Howlin' Maggie. (The set list featured a large chunk of final album 1965, as well as lots of dips into cover tunes and snippets, including opener "The Boys Are Back in Town," and dashes of "Superstition," "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida," "Little Red Corvette," "People Get Ready," "Hot for Teacher," "All You Need is Love" and Madonna's "Express Yourself," among others.)

Today it was announced that The Afghan Whigs will return to the scene of the crime and perform their first hometown show in over a decade on Oct. 25 at Bogart's, one month and 13 years after that final concert. Tickets are $33.50 ($45.86 with fees). The fan pre-sale starts this morning at 10 a.m.; tickets go on sale to the general public this Friday at 10 a.m. Click here for info. (Check The Afghan Whigs' official site for a password to get in on the pre-sale.)

Though the neighborhood has changed a lot since The Whigs roamed the earth originally, the band returning to Corryville is fitting. While frontman Greg Dulli would eventually bring his band The Twilight Singers to Newport's Southgate House frequently, Bogart's was the Whigs hometown concert home. Before that, the group played many shows at long-since-shuttered Sudsy Malone's across the street from Bogart's, while it and Top Cat's just a few blocks up the street were the sites of a few epic "secret shows," warm-up gigs for tours where the band would perform under a pseudonym like The Havana Sugar Kings or Gato Negro. 

Update: The fan pre-sale password for Bogart's is uptownagain. Use it here starting at 10 a.m. today.

Update2: The pre-sale is now at noon today, according to the ticketing site.

Revitalization group 3CDC's live music programming throughout the past few summers has helped turn Fountain Square into the heart of Cincinnati's increasingly active downtown area, drawing thousands to the Square every week to catch everything from Reggae and Salsa to Hip Hop and Indie Rock.

The group will be doing the same thing in Over-the-Rhine at the newly renovated Washington Park across from Music Hall. The Park officially opens tomorrow (July 6) with a 10 a.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony. The christening will be followed by tours of the park, then a free 5 p.m. World Choir Games "friendship concert" at the Bandstand.

Like with Fountain Square, Washington Park's weekly music series will showcase local musicians, with live performances on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.

Wednesday will be "Bandstand Bluegrass" night, featuring some of the best area Bluegrass artists. The shows begin July 11 and will run every week, starting at 7 p.m., until Sept. 5. On Fridays, the Park features "Friday Flow," a night of R&B and Soul that starts July 13 and runs each Friday through Sept. 5.

The lineups for Wednesdays and Fridays have yet to be announced, but more details have been made available about the every-Thursday Jazz in the Park series. Beginning July 12, the lineup has been curated by local Jazz pianist Chris Comer, who held a similar role on Fountain Square last year. The first Jazz in the Park concert is July 12 and features Comer and his quintet, plus special guest Napoleon Maddox from the progressive Jazz/Hip Hop group IsWhat?!

Jazz in the Park performances run 7-9 p.m. through Aug. 30. Other shows in the series include the P&G Big Band (July 19); The Cincy Brass (Aug. 2); Steve Schmidt (Aug. 9), Ricky Nye Inc. (Aug. 16); and the Dick Sorice-Dan Jackson Quintet (Aug. 23).

Along with many other special concerts — like Over the Rhine's (the band) free show July 22 and the rare joint performance featuring Cincinnati Pops, May Festival Chorus, Cincinnati Opera and Cincinnati Ballet — the Washington Park summer schedule is filled with other types of events, from community festivals to "dog programs" to movie nights and special "Curiosity Saturdays" for kids.

One of the coolest physical changes to Washington Park is the interactive Classical Music Walk of Fame, a project in conjunction with the American Classical Music Hall of Fame and InfoTrust which will enable visitors to use their smartphones and tablets to play various musical selections through the park's sound system or through the very cool "musical fountains," which will change appearance/flow/color depending on which music is selected.

Here's a quick overview of how the interactive Classical Music Walk of Fame will work.



To read about all of the things Washington Park has planned just this summer alone (remember, it will be a primary venue for the MidPoint Music Festival at the end of September) click here.

Bush was the peak of Alternative music success in the mid and late ’90s. After an eight year break, the band reformed with as fresh a sound as they ever have provided. From its first No. 1 album, Razorblade Suitcase, Bush was an unstoppable force until its split in 2002. In 2010, lead singer Gavin Rossdale put the band back together and Bush recently released its fifth studio album, The Sea of Memories. CityBeat caught up with Rossdale to preview the band’s concert with Chevelle and Filter this Friday at Riverbend's PNC Pavilion. We discussed the process of putting the band back together, the current tour. R.E.M.'s breakup and how his turbulent upbringing impacts his songwriting.

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An impressive and eclectic roster of local bands will transform an otherwise stark Loveland VFW hall into an artsy, flashy, sorta hippy-ish Rock ‘n’ Roll venue for this year’s third annual Adjust Your Eyes Music and Arts Festival, June 26 and 27. The two-day, two-stage, multimedia extravaganza, which is the brainchild of Grasshopper Juice labelmeister and Wonky Tonk/Chick Pimp band member Nick Mitchell, will feature not only upwards of 28 bands but also art by Jacklyn Howard and CincyStar Glass and stage lights and visualizations by Bunk News.

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Music Saturday: There's a clinic on modern Psych Rock music at the Southgate House as three disparate practitioners team up for a  9:30 p.m., all-ages show. Headliners The Black Angels touch on the Velvet Underground brand of psychedelia, with droning hypnotics, as well as later artists like Spacemen 3 and Jesus and Mary Chain. D.C.'s Dead Meadow have been working their brand of hard-rocking trippiness for the past 13 years, while L.A.'s Spindrift make soundtracks for desert vision quests, influenced by the likes of The Doors, Hawkwind and Electronic music pioneer, Bruce Haack. The band's cinematic sound has been used to soundtrack several film projects (including the Tarantino-produced Hell Ride), and, this spring, the group released Classic Soundtracks Volume 1, featuring 14 themes from various scores, which were made into short films by various directors, touching on everything from Bollywood to film noir (the films, music videos and trailers from the project have been screened to a national audience on the IFC network). Check out a few examples from Spindrift's soundtracks project below. Tickets for tonight's show are $18 at the door.

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One of the more popular features at this year's MidPoint Music Festival isn't a band or singer/songwriter — it's a truck. The "Rolling Record Store" used by (and stocked with releases from) Jack White's Third Man Records will be at MPMF Sept. 28 and 29, between visits to the Muddy Roots Festival and New York City's CMJ conference/fest.

An extension of White's tiny Third Man record store in Nashville (connected to his label's HQ), the record truck stocks all kinds of Third Man releases, including limited edition vinyl, as well as various Third Man merch. There is also reportedly a DJ station so visitors can spin tunes and a sound system was installed so that bands/musicians can plug in and play. White himself has performed a few times along the Rolling Store's travels (but it's not a guarantee).

The Third Man Records Rolling Record store — which debuted last year at South By Southwest in Austin, Tex. — will make a great addition to the growing MidPoint Midway, the outdoor area featuring vendors, a side-stage, poster exhibitions and other cool "pop up" projects. The bright-yellow truck even has local ties — it was built by Erlanger, Ky.'s C. Cook Enterprises, a car restoration and metal fabrication shop.

I visited White's Third Man headquarters in Nashville a few weeks ago and got to check out the cool merchandise on sale in that closet-sized shop. The Rolling Record Store was parked in the parking lot. I didn't get a tour, but even from the outside, it's a pretty striking vehicle (and I took a few photos, like the one above). Can't wait to see inside at the end of next month!

Here's White playing a "B show" (side gigs on his current solo tour) next to the truck during the recent Outside Lands Festival.

Up-and-coming underground rapper Chris Webby performs tonight at downtown club Play. Doors open at 7 p.m. and tickets are $20 at the door. The show is open to all ages. Guests include GMB, Nynewest and hosts DJ Scholar and DJ Drowsy.

Webby is a Connecticut native (he has it tattooed on his chest; I'd move to Ohio if I were going to do that) who started rapping before high school and began to draw crowds at freestyle battles and with his popular mixtapes releases. Webby's built huge buzz in independent Hip Hop circles and has so far resisted signing a record deal. Click here to check out his mixtapes and other releases.

Webby recently tweeted that he's just recently boarded his plane to Cincy. "PLAY in Cincinnati is about to get real weird tonight," he added.



• Utah rockers The Used blast into Bogart's tonight. The 7:30 p.m. show is all ages and includes openers Stars In Stereo. Tickets are $25.

The Used's energized Post Hardcore style is sparked by vocalist Bert McCracken, whose stage antics are an unpredictable throwback to Rock & Roll's more dangerous frontmen (Iggy, etc.). The Used's latest album, Vulnerable, came out earlier this spring on Hopeless Records. The album hit No. 1 on the Top Independent Albums chart when released and made it to No. 8 on the Billboard 200.

Here's the video for The Used's single "I Come Alive."



• The song of legendary drummer Ginger Baker, Kofi, is bringing his Cream tribute band to Covington tonight for an 8 p.m., all-ages show at the Madison Theater. Kofi Baker formed Kofi Baker's Cream Experience after catching the Cream reunion in 2005 and deciding he'd like to pick up where the originals left off. In the Clapton role is Tony Spinner, a Rock/Blues singer and guitarist who was a member of Toto in the ’00s. Playing bass is another talented musician, Ric Fierabracci, who has performed with the likes of Chick Corea, Shakira and Yanni.

Kofi made his first live appearance when he was 6, playing with his pops on BBC's Old Grey Whistle Test in 1975. Here he is rocking with the Cream Experience in more recent years.



• MOTR Pub in Over-the-Rhine has a free show tonight headlined by Canadian Electro Pop group Parallels. Showtime is 10 p.m. and like-minded locals Skeleton Hands also perform.

Parallels has drawn comparisons to New Order and singer Holly Dodson has been likened to singer Kate Bush and Madonna. The band was formed in 2008 by Dodson and Cameron Findlay, the former drummers for popular electronicists Crystal Castles.

Parallels sophomore full-length, XII, is due out June 26. Here's a clip for the band's song "Ultralight."



Click her for more music events around town tonight.

We told you a few weeks back about the lineup for the MidPoint Indie Summer concert series on Fountain Square, featuring numerous (primarily local) Indie and Rock acts every Friday this summer from 7-11 p.m. Click here for the full rundown.

But there are many other popular themed nights returning this summer to both Fountain Square and Washington Park, which re-opened after a major makeover in time to introduce live music nights last summer for the first time. (Both spots are managed by the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC).

Fountain Square's PNC Summer Music Series will have live music five days a week, while Washington Park will host three themed music nights this summer. All events are free and a great way to enjoy our city's central districts. The concerts begin at the end of May/start of June and run through the end of August/start of September. Be sure to check the official websites of both venues for any updates, additions or cancellations.

Fountain Square

• Every Tuesday from 7-9 p.m., the Square presents "American Roots" night. This year, the lineup is the strongest its been, showcasing the best of Greater Cincinnati's rich Roots/Americana scene (as well as a few regional faves). 

May 27
8 p.m.: Magnolia Mountain
7 p.m. Terminal Union

June 4
8 p.m.: Kentucky Struts
7 p.m.: The Turkeys

June 11
8 p.m.: The Tillers
7 p.m.: Tom Evanchuck

June 18
8 p.m.: Dallas Moore Band
7 p.m.: Jamison Road

June 25
8 p.m.: Kentucky Timbre
7 p.m.: Tex Schramm

July 2
8 p.m.: Shiny and the Spoon
7 p.m.: Ten String Symphony

July 9
8 p.m.: Glossary
7 p.m.: Frontier Folk Nebraska

July 16
8 p.m.: Pure Grain
7 p.m.: Straw Boss

July 23
8 p.m.: Jeremy Pinnell & the 55s
7 p.m.: Arlo McKinley

July 30
8 p.m.: Great Peacock
7 p.m.: The Seedy Seeds

August 6
8 p.m.: Bulletville
7 p.m.: Ricky Nye & Chris Douglas

August 13
8 p.m.: Mason James
7 p.m.: Honey and Houston

August 20
8 p.m.: Bobby Mackey
7 p.m.: Blair Carman

August 27
8 p.m.: Robert Ellis
7 p.m.: Fifth on the Floor

• Reggae Wednesdays return to the Square this summer, with wider-net bookings that include numerous regional and touring Reggae acts. Music runs every night from 6-10 p.m. and acts are teamed up with a DJ or DJ squad for each event. 

May 29
The Ohms
Summer Splash Happy Hour with DJ Frankie D

June 5
The Zionites
Summer Splash Happy Hour with Queen City Imperial Sound System

June 12
Cliftones
Summer Splash Happy Hour with DJ Frankie D

June 19
Seefari
Summer Splash Happy Hour with I Vibez

June 26
The Drastics
Summer Splash Happy Hour with DJ Frankie D

July 3
Jah Messengers
Summer Splash Happy Hour with Queen City Imperial Sound System

July 10
Dougie Simpson and Faith
Summer Splash Happy Hour with DJ Frankie D

July 17
Billbuckers
Summer Splash Happy Hour with I Vibez

July 24
Ark Band
Summer Splash Happy Hour with DJ Frankie D

July 31
Bajah + the Dry Eye Crew
Summer Splash Happy Hour with Queen City Imperial Sound System

August 7
Ras Dodirie
Summer Splash Happy Hour with DJ Frankie D

August 14
Ras Gato
Summer Splash Happy Hour with I Vibez

August 21
Nature
Summer Splash Happy Hour with DJ Frankie D

August 28
One World Tribe
Summer Splash Happy Hour with Queen City Imperial Sound System

• Salsa dancers and music lovers will be happy to know that Salsa on the Square is returning this summer on Thursdays, running 7-10 p.m. As always, dance instructors will be on hand to give you pointers (if you need 'em). Music is provided primarily by some of Greater Cincinnati's finest Salsa/Latin music groups. 

May 30: Son Del Caribe

June 6: Kandela

June 13: Zumba

June 20: Tropicoso

June 27: Grupo Tumbao

July 4: Clave’ Son

July 11: Kandela

July 18: Tropiscoso

 uly 25: Grupo Tumbao

August 1: Zumba

August 8: Azucar Tumbao

August 15: Clave’ Son

August 22: Brian Andres & the Afro-Cuban Jazz Cartel 

August 29: Son Del Caribe 

• Before MidPoint Indie Summer on Fridays, local club/bar conglomerate 4EG (which operates several nightclubs in the area) will present 4EG Happy Hour from 5-7 p.m. Local DJs will spin every Friday (except for Aug. 2, when local cover band Snidely Whiplash performs). 

May 31:
DJ Ice Cold Tony

June 7:
DJ Jake the Ripper

June 14:
DJ E-trayn

June 21:
DJ Identity

June 28:
DJ Jesse the Ripper

July 5:
DJ D-Lo

July 12:
Fuseamania

July 19:
DJ Tina T

July 26:
DJ Will Kill

August 2:
Snidely Whiplash 

August 9:
DJ Scene

August 16:
DJ Simo

August 23:
DJ Spryte

August 30:
TBA

• One of the most popular nights on the Square during the summer is Saturdays' "Beats" night, booked by local promoter Self Diploma. The concerts run 7-10 p.m. and again feature an impressive mix of local and touring Hip Hop, Electronic and DJ acts. Among the national act highlights this year are Mod Sun, Hoodie Allen, Watch the Duck and DJ Jazzy Jeff. 

June 1
10 p.m.: Chuck Inglish
9 p.m.: Puck
8 p.m.: Olu
7 p.m.: The Natives

June 8
10 p.m.: DJ D-LO
9 p.m.: Cal Scruby
8 p.m.: SD Choice
7 p.m.: DJ Vizion

June 15
10 p.m.: Hoodie Allen
9 p.m.:D-Why
8 p.m.: Sam Lachow
7 p.m.: Ian J

June 22
10 p.m.: Mod Sun
9 p.m.: Trademark Aaron
8 p.m.: Junya Be
7 p.m.: Jean P

June 29
10 p.m.: Drummer vs Emulator
9 p.m.: Firecat 451
8 p.m.: Black Signal
7 p.m.: Catch Phrase

July 6
10 p.m.: Mutrix
9 p.m.: Milk N Cookies
8 p.m.: DJ X Nightmare
7 p.m.: No Limits

July 13
10 p.m.: T Mills
9 p.m.: Huey Mack
8 p.m.: Santino Corleon
7:30 p.m.: Round 2 Crew
7 p.m.: Nick Youngerman

July 20
10 p.m.: Collin Mcloughin
9 p.m.: Napalm
8 p.m.: X5ight
7 p.m.: DJ Sab

July 27
10 p.m.: Watch the Duck
9 p.m.: Gold Shoes
8 p.m.: Vincent Vega
7:30 p.m.: DJ Rhetorik
7 p.m.: Emari J

August 3
10 p.m.: Somo
9 p.m.: Arin Ray
8 p.m.: Eben Frankewitz
7 p.m.: Alabama Capital

August 10
9:30 p.m.: Stafford Brothers
8:30 p.m.: Davey C
7:45 p.m.: J Hollow
7 p.m.: 4 Grand

August 17
9:30 p.m.: Candyland
8:30 p.m.: DJ Prism
7:45 p.m.: B-Funk of Dave Rave
7 p.m.: Neon Medusa

August 24
9-11 p.m.: DJ Jazzy Jeff
8 p.m.: Joseph Nevels
7 p.m.: Erica P

Washington Park

After a successful inaugural summer of events last year, Washington Park brings back three music nights, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, plus several other entertainment offerings, including "Dancing Under the Stars," an every-Tuesday dance night, with lessons that focus on different types of dancing each week. (Click below for the concert lineups.)

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