The Comet 4579 Hamilton Ave., Northside This vintage-styled neon-lit Northside garage rock bar has a daily menu of big-ass burritos, strong booze and live music. And more than a few loyal customers come to The Comet’s Sunday brunch to feast off the hangover they earned in the same bar on Saturday night. Photo: facebook.com/TheCometCincinnati

Burritofest, a multi-day music festival at The Comet in Northside, is returning for its fourth year, wackier and weirder than ever.

The music fest will take place Thursday-Sunday, May 8-11 and feature bands and musicians from an eclectic range of genres, including hip hop, jazz, indie pop and rock, punk, bluegrass and more.

Burritofest’s fourth iteration comes fresh off earning the No. 9 spot on the list of Best Music Festival/Events in CityBeat‘s Best of Cincinnati Readers Poll.

“Honestly, ninth place is great for us because it has so much potential from a marketing perspective. Our promoting schtick centers around jokes, usually at our own expense. So while it’s absolutely an honor to be ranked alongside such an impressive list of peers, it’s also really funny to hype up a ninth-place finish like we just won a Nobel Prize or something,” event organizer Burrito Boys Booking said in a press release.

The festival will kick off Thursday, predominantly featuring hip hop and electronic acts like Siri Imani of the Triiibe Foundation; producer-singer-songwriter sappha; Camel Jam and several of his friends; and a headlining performance by New York’s Cannibal Ox. Friday offers a variety of acts, including local legend Jess Lamb, jazz-fusion group Spherical Agenda and Americana band Harlot.

On Saturday, expect heavier sounds of the noisy punk variety, like EATT, Heist, and Chicago-based (but Cincinnati-originated) Mr Phylzzz. Saturday will also feature three blocks of standup comics from Bombs Away! Comedy. As for Sunday, things will mellow out with acoustic performances from the likes of Nick Fed and the traditional Sunday night show from The Comet Bluegrass Allstars.

And you can’t have Burritofest without burritos. The Comet will once again have a special-edition burrito that will only be on the menu for the weekend, along with sponsor Rhinegeist’s brews. There will also be special edition Burritofest t-shirts designed by Defective Deity for sale, along with the return of buttons (IYKYK).

As always, admission is pay-what-you-can. All the proceeds will go to performers and to cover operation costs.

See the full lineup on the flyers below:


The Comet, 4579 Hamilton Ave., Northside. More info: cometbar.com.

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This article appears in Apr 17-30, 2024.

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Katherine Barrier is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati’s journalism program and has nearly 10 years of experience reporting local and national news as a digital journalist. At CityBeat, she...