With a dazzling 42-act lineup, the Midwest Friends Fest is back and bigger than ever. The annual music festival — which features genre-defying artists from the Cincinnati area, across the Midwest and beyond — will return to Newport’s Southgate House Revival on May 30 and 31.
This year’s slew of must-see local acts includes shoegaze supergroup Mall Witch and introspective garage rockers Tooth Lures a Fang. Saturday will also feature a special performance from the 22-2s, a band consisting entirely of Southgate House Revival employees, whose song “Southgate House Song (Try)” was inspired by the historic venue. Meanwhile, locals like Alex Kasznel & the Board of Directors, Lay Low and Pickle Bucket will each put their unique spin on the beloved pop-punk genre.
Festivalgoers can also catch rare sets from out-of-towners like Connecticut-based Cinema Stare, whose 2023 debut album The Things I Don’t Need bursts with infectious hooks and headbang-inducing guitar rhythms. The band previously performed in Cincinnati last June, but they have promised fans “even sillier shenanigans” this time around.
Kat and the Hurricane — an all-queer and trans trio from Wisconsin — are also traveling south for the two-day festival. Blending synth rock with indie-pop, they specialize in upbeat, impassioned melodies and deeply cathartic lyrics. Similarly, featured bands blucone and Hussy Fit have developed their own original musical styles and operate outside of traditional genre constraints. The former’s listeners dub their sound “jazzy-futuristic indie-pop” and the latter describe themselves as a “bubblegrunge-synthpunk riotband.”
Several artists signed to SofaBurn Records, a Dayton, Kentucky-based record label and 2025 festival partner, are also featured on this year’s lineup, including Americana/roots band Nick Dittmeier & the Sawdusters and Philadelphia natives The Tisburys, who take inspiration from bands like Frightened Rabbit and The Hold Steady.
Additional community partners Start Today Harm Reduction, Triiibe Foundation, Abortion Fund of Ohio, Burrito Booking Boys, Say It Louder Fest, Red Wine & Blue, SofaBurn Inc. and PFLAG Cincinnati will be on-site to engage with audience members.
Fans of high-energy performances, music discovery and community-building will feel right at home at Midwest Friends Fest, where everyone (even newcomers and visitors) are considered friends. Single-day and two-day passes are available now.
Midwest Friends Fest takes place May 30 and 31 at the Southgate House Revival. More info: southgatehouse.com.
This story is featured in CityBeat’s May 14 print edition.
This article appears in May 14-27, 2025.