For more on the 2016 Cincinnati Entertainment Awards, visit citybeat.com’s CEA page.
The Cincinnati area seems to be producing more and more musical talent lately that is drawing national (and international) attention. Though they may all sound completely different, there is one thing each of those artists has in common — they were all “new” at one time. CityBeat’s third-annual “Best New Bands” issue will hopefully give you a look at some of the city’s potential “Next Big Things” (either locally or beyond the city limits) while they still have that new-band smell.
In the following pages, you’ll find profiles of the six bands that were nominated in the New Artist of the Year category for this year’s CityBeat Cincinnati Entertainment Awards. The nominees range from Indie Pop music-makers (Multimagic, Coconut Milk) and heavy, energetic rockers with head-turning live shows (Go Go Buffalo, The Skulx) to a unique modern Alt/R&B/Soul creator (JSPH) and a duo that makes creative AltFolk music with guitars, synths and a sitar (Dawg Yawp). Maybe it’s not “a little of everything,” but that’s a pretty impressive range of nominees, and each has a great story.
Be sure to follow the links at the end of each article to listen to the artists and learn more about them. And Saturday night you will have a chance to hear and see most of these acts live as CityBeat presents the Best New Bands showcase at Bogart’s (2621 Vine St., Corryville, bogarts.com). The 7 p.m. show features New Artist of the Year nominees Go Go Buffalo, Dawg Yawp, Coconut Milk, JSPH and The Skulx, and also special guests Daniel Van Vechten and Dead Man String Band. Speaking of special, the night will close with a performance by rockers Honeyspiders, who won the CEA for New Artist of the Year in 2015 and are nominated for CEAs this year in the Rock, Best Live Act and Album of the Year categories.
Admission for Saturday’s showcase is only $5. You can find out who wins New Artist of the Year (and all of the other categories) on Jan. 31 at the 19th-annual Cincinnati Entertainment Awards ceremony at Covington’s Madison Theater. Tickets for the event are available now through cincyticket.com. For a few dollars more, you can also purchase special VIP tickets, which help support the Cincinnati Music Heritage Foundation.You can still vote for this year’s CEAs at citybeat.com. But hurry — the polls close on Jan. 21.
The Nominees:
This article appears in Jan 13-20, 2016.