The Lockland Brakes, an excellent Cincinnati Pop Punk foursome, celebrate the release of their debut full-length, Attachments, Friday night at Northside Tavern (northside-tavern.com). The band — which features current and former members of superb area acts like Situation Red, Newport Secret Six and DAAP Girls — will be joined by Cincy Punk greats The Dopamines, Ft. Wayne, Ind.-based Flamingo Nosebleed and local singer/songwriter John Hays for the free, 9 p.m. show.
Though together for only a couple of years, the impressive tightness The Lockland Brakes show on their debut album suggests the members have played together for much longer. It probably helps that singer/guitarists Opie and Jeff (no last names, please, this is Punk Rock) honed their chops together for a few years in Situation Red and the Brakes already have extensive road experience.
But precision is just a small part of Attachments’ infectious appeal. The songwriting is top-notch, full of gruff but ear-burrowing melodies and fist-pumping, anthem-worthy choruses. The rhythm section is impeccable (noteworthy because sloppy bass and drums are so many Punk bands’ fatal flaws), handling the sometimes breakneck pace and crafty time signature shifts effortlessly. And the two guitarists duel with creative intensity on every track, helping to further set the Brakes apart from the typical Pop Punk pack.
The Lockland Brakes haven’t reinvented the Pop Punk wheel with Attachments; that’s pretty much impossible to do without Frankenstein-ing some weird, new (probably horrible) offshoot genre. But what they have done has concocted a start-to-finish gem of adrenalized catchiness, delivered with irreproachable chops and sharply honed songwriting instincts. Good luck finding a Midwestern Pop Punk album better than this in 2014. (locklandbrakes.com)
Time to ‘Adjust Your Eyes’ Again
Probably the most adventurous local music/art-focused festival in Greater Cincinnati, the AYE Music & Art Festival (“AYE” standing for “Adjust Your Eyes”) returns this weekend to Newport, Ky.’s Southgate House Revival (southgatehouse.com) for its ninth annual event. Along with the showcasing some of the area’s more intriguing art and music, AYE (presented by the local Grasshopper Juice label) is also a fundraiser, donating proceeds to a variety of charities since its inception. This year, AYE will make a donation to the Northside Cincinnati Skate Park (facebook.com/northsideskatepark), a planned multi-purpose community park that is currently in the works.
AYE will utilize all three stages at the Southgate House Revival for the Friday/Saturday fest, which will include stage installations, light design, visual projections and an array of other visual art offerings.
On the musical side of things, AYE presents everything from Indie, Punk, Rock and Roots music to Electronic, Hip Hop and Experimental sounds. On Friday in the Southgate’s Sanctuary, catch Mardou, No Slave To Tomorrow, Comprador, Sleeves, Husk & Skull and Little Trees. Entertainment in the Lounge Friday will include sets by Throw a Fit, Majestic Man, Strange Mechanics, LZRPNY, Pete Fosco & Friends and Rhythm∆∆Canyon. Friday’s Revival Room lineup features Black Signal, Meiosis, Counterfeit Money Machine, Juan Cosby, B-rad from The Breeze, Audley, Vampire Weekend at Bernie’s and Supa.
Saturday on the Sanctuary stage, AYE presents Peridoni, ethosine, Abiyah, Jennifer Simone, Revenge Piñata and Jim Casto, while the Lounge will have Don’t Fear the Satellites, Evolve, umin, Zijnzijn Zijnzijn!, Eugenius, Nap Nuclear, Blackey Portland and Kafari. Saturday in the Revival Room, fest-goers can check out Hunterquinn, Sweet Ray Laurel, Kumasi, Talk Mouth, Wonky Tonk & the Holiday Ramblers, Nancy P and John Hays.
Music begins at 8 p.m. both nights. Tickets are $12 through ticketfly.com. For full info, visit grasshopperjuice.com/aye-music-art-festival.
More Local Notes
• Fade to White, the first album by Copper, a new project from singer/songwriter/guitarist Peter Obermark, will be released in conjunction with a show this Thursday at Mt. Lookout’s The Redmoor (theredmoor.com). The free show begins at 8 p.m. and features special guests The Graveblankets and Brian Lovely, who also perform on the catchy, rootsy Pop/Rock album alongside other renowned area artists like Rob Fetters, Randy Villars and Charlie Fletcher. (facebook.com/copperband)
• Friday at Northside club Mayday (maydaynorthside.com), dynamic local Rock crew Spy Satellite hosts a release party for its debut album, The Time of the Dinosaurs. The band members plan to perform the new LP at the free, 10 p.m. show, where they’ll be joined by opening acts The New Void and Nature Was Here. Attendees will receive a free CD version of Dinosaurs; for those who can’t make the show, the album will be available online through iTunes, Spotify, Bandcamp (spysatellite.bandcamp.com) and elsewhere starting Saturday. (spy-satellite.com)
CONTACT MIKE BREEN: [email protected] or @CityBeatMusic
