Aug 16-23, 2017
Full House: Newcomers vying for City Council are getting creative amid a bevy of contenders
Morning News: Mallory endorses Simpson; Metro holds meetings on bus route cuts tonight; someone will always be watching Ohio’s medicinal weed
Good morning all. I was out for a couple days to go see the eclipse (it was nuts), but I’m back now. Here’s some news for you. Former Cincinnati mayor Mark Mallory yesterday endorsed Cincinnati City Councilwoman Yvette Simpson in her bid for mayor. Mallory served two terms as mayor before current Mayor John Cranley…
Minimum Gauge: Why did most Country music superstars not comment on the white-power rally and resulting death in Virginia?
HOT: Fear of Getting Dixie Chicked Still Strong Rolling Stone examined the response from Country artists following the white supremacy rally in Charlottesville, Va. that resulted in the murder of activist Heather Heyer by a “white nationalist.” While hit-makers like Kip Moore and Kacey Musgraves issued unequivocal denunciations of white supremacy, most superstars were silent.…
Monuments to Racism
To paraphrase Barry Goldwater, “Treason in defense of slavery is no virtue.” The Confederate leaders, whose monuments are the latest event in the news-cycle of stupidity, were traitors, and their reason was racism. Sure, some of us were taught the revisionist history that the Civil War was about economics (an economy built on slave labor)…
Sound Advice: Com Truise with Moonbeau and Black Signal (Aug. 25)
For awhile, art director Seth Haley explored a different side of his creative personality by crafting Electronic/Synthwave music under a variety of pseudonymous identities, including SYSTM, Sarin Sunday, Airliner and Komputer Cast. After three years, Haley chose yet another new name for himself by inverting the initials of a certain movie star and recorded his…
Sound Advice: Tyler Childers and the Whispering Beard Folk Festival (Aug. 24-27)
Although he's just 26, Tyler Childers is already a seasoned music veteran. For the past six years, the Paintsville, Ky. native has been writing evocative new songs that are so steeped in Country/Bluegrass tradition, you'd swear they were obscure covers rescued from the dusty drawer of a forgotten Nashville publisher. Childers has also been forging…
Morning News: Cranley backs Whaley in governor race; mountain bike trail could come to Mount Airy Forest; Ohio’s unemployment rate rises
Hey hey Cincy. Here’s a little news to take you into the weekend. Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley has thrown his support behind Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley in her bid for governor. Whaley is competing with three other Democrats, including Greater Cincinnati resident and former State Rep. Connie Pillich, for a chance to take on the…
Stage Door: A Maid, a Chaperone and Some Naked Guys
Three entertaining choices are onstage for mid-August. This is the final weekend for Marian: The True Story of Robin Hood (its final performance at Know Theatre is Saturday evening). I saw it when it opened earlier this month and called it “a pleasant lightweight story for a midsummer show, the zany brand of theater that’s…
Sound Advice: Blackberry Smoke with Gov’t Mule (Aug. 24)
With the recent passing of Gregg Allman, the greatest of all the Southern Rock icons — the Allman Brothers — finally ended their nearly 50-years-long career. To pass the torch, it's fitting that Allman sings a song with Blackberry Smoke on the band’s latest album, Like an Arrow, recording his part the year before his…
Your Weekend To Do List (Aug. 18-20)
FRIDAY 18 EVENT: HERE CHANNEL Here Channel, a project by Caroline Creaghead that launches Friday, will enable anyone to be a content creator and host of his or her own audio program. It merges aspects of both radio and podcasting into a streaming format that can be heard online or through listening stations at an…
Morning News: City officials to discuss violence prevention; library director got big raise; Franklin removes monument to Confederate general
Hey Cincinnati. Let’s hit some quick news points this morning, shall we? This spring, Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County Director Kim Fender said that state budget cuts presented “a financial tipping point” for the institution, that the library had already cut hours and reworked spending as much as possible due to past cuts and…
A favor, a scandal and questions about judicial conduct
What began as a seemingly innocuous request for a favor — one public official asking another for a paid internship for his son — has mushroomed into a call for an independent investigation and an end to the cronyism rampant in the Hamilton County courthouse. Sitting at a makeshift table in front of the courthouse…
Adventurous Cincinnati Hip Hop veterans Abiyah and Evolve put collaboration on tape
On Aug. 22, “Boom,” a collaborative single by Abiyah and Evolve, two longtime Cincinnati artists who’ve consistently explored Hip Hop in unique ways, will be released via Abiyah’s Bandcamp page (abiyahmusic.bandcamp.com). “Boom” will be available to stream and purchase/download at the site, but as one might expected from the maverick pair, it will also be…
First trailer released for Cincinnati-filmed ‘Sacred Deer’
The best part about the upsurge in films being made in Cincinnati is that there have been some very ambitious ones — prestige titles with Academy Award hopes — among the releases. Carol, for instance, and Miles Ahead. The very controversial The Killing of a Sacred Deer, shot here last year and premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, is…
Minimum Gauge: Sign a petition to have the national anthem updated with a feature from Quavo because we’re all going to die so why does it even matter anymore
HOT: Time for an Anthem Remix A fan of Hip Hop trio Migos’ Quavo has started a petition at change.org that, if it receives enough signatures, could be taken to the president, Congress and other government officials for a response. The petition asks that the U.S. national anthem be remade “to get with the times”…
Morning News: Councilmembers, NAACP urge scrutiny of event permits for racist groups; could Cincy be in the running for a World Cup?; Loveland mayor steps down
Hello all. Here’s some quick news for you this morning. Catching up a little, Cincinnati City Council and Hamilton County Commissioners Monday signed commitments to a new 45-year agreement governing the region’s Metropolitan Sewer District. That agreement would create a five-member board to oversee MSD, with three members appointed by the county and two by…
Expansion of Northside Classic Melt
Having moved from a cramped space in a crowded block on Hamilton Avenue to the ground floor of the Gantry building, funky little Melt Eclectic Café debuted brand-new digs this summer. The vegetarian-friendly eatery now dominates a prominent corner in what owner Molly Wellmann calls “the heart of Northside.” With more than twice as much…
Radically Free ‘Radio’ Comes to Cincinnati
Here Channel, a project by Caroline Creaghead that launches Friday, will enable anyone to be a content creator and host of his or her own audio program. It merges aspects of both radio and podcasting into a streaming format that can be heard online or through listening stations at an Over-the-Rhine studio across from Findlay…
Local astronomers say the upcoming solar eclipse is the most amazing thing you’ll ever see
The total eclipse of the sun, coming to a sky near you on Aug. 21, is said to be the most spectacular astronomical event one can experience. The last time a total eclipse was visible from coast to coast across the United States was 99 years ago. This time, the sweep of the moon’s shadow…
Going ‘Full Monty’ at The Carnegie
Back in 1997, The Full Monty, a British film about unemployed steelworkers in Sheffield, England, was a surprise success. A few years later, it became an Americanized musical and had a successful two-year run on Broadway from 2000 to 2002. The Carnegie in Covington has mounted the show as its late-summer musical. I attended opening night…
Riding and Rating Wooden Coasters
At the start of the summer season, Kings Island debuted Mystic Timbers, a 109-foot-tall wooden coaster whose construction allowed the park to reclaim the title of having the world’s largest collection of wooden tracks — almost 19,000 feet. The new addition solidified the park’s holy trinity of wooden thrill rides, which include The Beast and The…
Foreign-Born Artists Explore Identity at CAC
The Contemporary Arts Center has arranged a harmonious visual duet about immigration and identity, accompanied by the haunting strains of string instruments that have been cut in half. In separate solo shows, Jane Benson and Njideka Akunyili Crosby, foreign-born artists who now live in the United States, explore what it’s like to be a stranger…
‘Brigsby Bear’: A Man-Child’s Right to Bear Arms
We never fully appreciate the fine and distinct lines between genres and our emotional responses to them until a filmmaker dares to firmly plant feet on both sides of the line of demarcation. In Brigsby Bear, director Dave McCary, known for shorts and comedic television work, oversees a script from Kevin Costello and star Kyle Mooney…
A Tale of Two Story-Driven Sports Docs
I’ve never been a big “sports person” in terms of what I like to watch on TV. A story-driven fictional drama is far more compelling to me than the real-life strategy and athleticism displayed on a football field. When I do watch a game, I find myself wanting to know who these players are —…
Revolution Rotisserie expands into Pleasant Ridge
Revolution Rotisserie & Bar has come far since its early days as a chicken-and-pita-sandwich pop-up in Findlay Market. After expanding into a full restaurant on Race Street in 2015, Revolution is extending its reach with a second location in Pleasant Ridge. Revolution will replace what was formerly Emanu East African Restaurant at 6063 Montgomery Road. …
What a Week! Aug. 9-15
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 09 These days, there’s a cruise experience for everyone. Fans can sail away with New Kids on the Block, the Dancing with the Stars cast or Star Wars characters. And lest we forget about the Rob Gronkowski cruise of 2016, Gronk’s Party Ship. Now, finally, adventurers can embark on a Mike Huckabee Bible cruise! Set sail to Israel…
Punk Talks uniquely connects mental health resources to musicians and music fans
Punk Talks, a mental health organization that aims to provide free, professional therapy and services to touring musicians, music fans and music industry workers, was born of a quarter-life crisis. One day, in her last semester of college studying social work at Northern Kentucky University, Sheridan Allen was blow-drying her hair when she started thinking…
Newcomers vying for City Council are getting creative amid a bevy of contenders
Every couple years, a swarm rolls through Cincinnati, knocking on doors, descending on community council meetings and sweeping through church festivals from Mount Adams to Carthage to shake hands and nurse beers in plastic cups. Yes, it’s that time again: The race for City Council has returned. Thanks to a change in 2013 that doubled…
Near Earth Objects preps first full-length album, ‘Drift,’ for liftoff
Cincinnati Indie Rock foursome Near Earth Objects celebrates the release of its impressive full-length debut, Drift, this Saturday with a free show at MOTR Pub (1345 Main St., Over-the-Rhine, motrpub.com). Chicago’s Bailiff opens the night at 10 p.m. Drift is a compelling collection of wonderfully orchestrated Indie Rock songs that lean heavily to the psychedelic…
Hate in the Buckeye State
By midday Aug. 12, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe had already declared a state of emergency and a large white supremacist rally had dispersed when a silver 2010 Dodge Challenger barreled down the streets of Charlottesville, Va., plowing into a group of anti-racist protesters. Thirty-two-year-old Heather Heyer was killed and another 19 people injured. A 20-year-old…
Sound Advice: Lillie Mae with Moonbow (Aug. 22)
Lillie Mae Rische’s recent debut solo album — the widely celebrated and remarkably dynamic Americana tour de force Forever and Then Some — is the first time most have heard about the talented singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. But, though only in her mid-20s, Rische (who performs as simply Lillie Mae) is a seasoned veteran who…
Sound Advice: Ana Popovic with Noah Wotherspoon (Aug. 17)
With a little over 20 years of professional music experience on her illustrious résumé, Ana Popovic has been dropping the jaws of her audience as well as her peer group for more than half of her life. Picking up a guitar at age 15, the Belgrade, Serbia native’s personal connection to the Blues was fostered…
Sound Advice: Guided By Voices with The Dopamines (Aug. 16)
There is no logical, rational explanation for Robert Pollard. He creates constantly and consistently, whether it’s writing songs or crafting the collages that have graced the covers of a fair amount of his releases. April’s August by Cake, the first double-length Guided By Voices album, was characterized as Pollard’s 100th full-length release, which, in typical…
