Apr 25 – May 2, 2018
Bringing It All Back Home: Now one of the world’s biggest Rock bands, the members of The National come back to their hometown to host this week’s Homecoming and MusicNOW festivals
Welcome Cincinnati’s New Poet Laureate at a Reception at the Mercantile Library
Manuel Iris, Cincinnati’s new Poet Laureate, meets the public — and will read some of his work — 6-8 p.m. Thursday at downtown's Mercantile Library at a reception that will also include the city's outgoing laureate, Pauletta Hansel. This will be Iris' first official act since he was appointed by City Council last month, and…
Mill Creek Rising
In a bit of grass in Salway Park, across from the stately lawns of Cincinnati's Spring Grove Cemetery, there is a rectangular stone bearing a simple, mysterious inscription: “Mahketewah.” The stone came from an aging, now-demolished warehouse building in the city's Queensgate industrial area, which is fitting in its own way. But the word itself,…
See the Streakers at Sunday’s Flying Pig Marathon
I first heard about the Flying Pig Marathon seven years ago, right when I moved to Cincinnati. After all, how could you not? It’s a part of our city’s culture, even for those who, like myself, pull a solid 20-minute mile (on a good day). However, the idea of lugging my body for 26.2 miles…
Best Places to Party for Cinco de Mayo in Cincinnati
There’s plenty of opportunities of chow down on Latin American fare any time of the year, but if happy hour margaritas and breakfast taco brunches aren’t reason enough, then Cinco de Mayo sure is. Celebrate Saturday night right by checking out these spots throughout the city. Third Annual Cinco de Mayo Fiesta at Gomez –…
There’s an Ocean Inside Camp Washington’s HudsonJones Gallery
You will be greeted with an unusual but immediately compelling sight as you enter into the exhibition space at HudsonJones gallery in Camp Washington to see the current show by Maryrose Cobarrubias Mendoza. Titled red, white and brown — new drawings and sculpture, it’s a lovely and deeply thoughtful, quietly emotional show. All the work…
REVIEW: Ensemble Theatre’s “His Eye is on the Sparrow”
His Eye is on the Sparrow at Ensemble Theatre is Larry Parr’s one-woman musical show that follows the groundbreaking African-American performer Ethel Waters as she rises to fame from a poverty-stricken childhood in Pennsylvania. The show follows her life from an astoundingly difficult upbringing as the daughter of a 13-year-old rape victim, through her years…
Merry National Concert Week to all (now hurry up and get some cheap concert tickets before they sell out)
Apparently, we are currently in the midst of “National Concert Week,” which kinda feels like a made-up thing concocted by the concert industry to get people to buy more concert tickets. (Insert chin-scratching emoji here.) But it’s not as if you have to buy other people concert-related gifts or anything (like those insane, consumer-driven holidays…
Study: Most common jobs in Cincinnati don’t pay enough to support families
Six out of the 10 most common jobs in the Cincinnati metropolitan area don’t pay enough to support a family without government assistance, a new study by progressive think tank Policy Matters Ohio says. That’s similar to the situation statewide. The study of new data from the U.S. Department of Labor looked at how many…
Hundreds turn out for meeting about Anderson High’s Native American mascot; more news
Hello, all. I’ve been dug in working on a couple long projects, one of which comes out in our print issue tomorrow. Now that I’m back, here’s a quick rundown of the crazy amount of news that has happened over the past few days. We'll get to see the results Wednesday of an internal investigation…
Sound Advice: Tav Falco’s Panther Burns with All-Seeing Eyes (May 8)
Though he was born in Philadelphia, raised in Arkansas and has often lived in Europe in recent decades, Memphis is the city most tied to the legacy of underground Rock hero Tav Falco. When he moved to the city in the early ’70s, he experimented with performance art, photography and filmmaking, the latter of which…
Kennedy Heights Art Exhibit Sheds Old Ideas About Gender Identity and Apparel
"When people would ask me what I was working on, I’d say, ‘I’m putting together a show about gender identity,’ ” first-time curator Nancy Gamon says, lowering her voice to speak the last words. “It felt like how we used to whisper ‘cancer.’ I felt really hesitant about saying what I was working on. I…
Sound Advice: Iris DeMent with Sam Baker (May 4)
In critics’ parlance, Iris DeMent is a “songwriter’s songwriter,” which simply means that other renowned and respected songwriters hold her work in the highest esteem. That was clearly evidenced on DeMent’s debut album, 1992’s Infamous Angel, when one of Folk’s most celebrated purveyors, John Prine, provided pithy and glowing liner notes for the newcomer. That…
Watch: Cincinnati Indie Rock trio A.M. Nice releases music video for “Mind Right”
This Friday, Cincinnati rockers A.M. Nice release their latest album, End of an Era, the follow-up to the trio’s self-titled debut in 2016. Like A.M. Nice, the new effort is being issued by long-running and well-distributed area independent label Phratry Records, marking the imprint’s 57th release since it began in 2004. Below you can check…
A touch of maturity hasn’t altered the artful and spontaneous approach of exploratory Indie Rock duo No Age
A great deal transpired in the lives of Indie Noise Rock auteurs No Age in the five years between the elaborate and beautifully packaged (but largely underappreciated) An Object and the recently released Snares Like a Haircut. One big headline for the Los Angeles duo of Randy Randall (guitar) and Dean Allen Spunt (drums/vocals) was…
Minimum Gauge: Trump shouts out Kanye during Michigan rally after asking if there were “any Hispanics in the room”
HOT: Kanye/MAGA Fallout When Kanye West proudly showed off his MAGA hat and professed his love for Donald Trump on Twitter last week, his musical peers responded less than enthusiastically. Several publicly expressed their disappointment in West’s endorsement, which Janelle Monàe pointed out was being “used as fuel by oppressors to continue to oppress black…
Cincinnati musicians to ‘Sell Out’ again, bring tribute to The Who to a bigger stage
On Jan. 6, 1968, legendary British Rock group The Who released its third album in the U.S., The Who Sell Out, a playful, humor-laced collection of songs interlaced with winking commercial jingles and PSAs that would go on to become a favorite among Who fans and music critics. On Jan. 8 of this year, four…
What’s in the Cincinnati Zoo and Public Library tax levy asks?
Hamilton County voters will have more than political party nominations to consider in this year’s May 8 primary election. Two of Cincinnati’s most venerable institutions are asking for public support via tax levies. The Cincinnati Zoo wants voters to stay the course when it comes to their contributions, asking for a levy renewal. That's Issue…
Findlay Market kicks off happy hour programming in the Biergarten
Findlay Market is extending its hours this spring to launch a new happy hour series at the Biergarten. From May through October, the Findlay Market Biergarten will be open 4-8 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday; 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. Sponsored by Christian Moerlein, the booze menu features a rotating lineup of…
Ohio’s weird, wild gubernatorial primaries intensify
A former presidential contender with alleged ties to supporters of a dictator in Syria. A lieutenant governor showing up to a gun rights rally with a shotgun as she works to brand herself as an outsider. Facebook boasts about romantic conquests. In Ohio’s post-Trump landscape, it's been a weird and heated gubernatorial primary season as…
Cincinnati’s Fuel the Sole running tours blend HIIT training, community, and appetizers
The constant grind of a 9-to-5 job lumped in with the obligations attached to friends and family — or “life,” as some might call it — can wear anyone down to the point where proper exercise is pushed off the schedule. As such, you can lose the balance between managing day-to-day responsibilities and staying healthy.…
Democrats line up to challenge GOP in some Northern Kentucky primaries
Democrats are seeing competitive primaries across Northern Kentucky, while GOP candidates are running mostly unopposed. Ahead of the May 22 primary election, the big race in Northern Kentucky is for the state’s 4th Congressional District. Incumbent Thomas Massie (R) is running unopposed in the primaries but will face the victor from a crowded field of…
Sound Advice: Minus the Bear (May 2)
In 2001, a group of musical friends and acquaintances in Seattle pooled their talents and hybridized their influences and passions into a singular sonic outcome that touched on various Rocks (Math, Indie, Classic, Prog), Jazz and Pop. In naming the band, the original quintet drew on the punchline of a true-life dirty joke; a mutual…
Millennium Falcon lands in Northern Kentucky
Celebrate Star Wars’ Day early in a galaxy not so far away. More specifically, just across state borders. A replica of Han Solo’s Millennium Falcon touched down Friday at Northern Kentucky University’s BB&T Arena. In anticipation of Solo: a Star Wars Story, the Falcon is making stops across the nation, including L.A, Atlanta, Denver, Salt…
FILM REVIEW: Lean on Pete
Charlie Plummer, the star of Lean on Pete, has been making quite an impact in the movies that feature him. As 16-year-old kidnapping victim John Paul Getty III in Ridley Scott’s recent All the Money in the World, the biographical crime drama exploring the kidnapping of the younger Getty and the deplorable reaction of his…
Cincinnati singer/songwriter Kim Taylor announces new album, ‘Songs of Instruction’
Kim Taylor, one of the finest singer/songwriters to come out of Cincinnati in the current century (she won the first of several Cincinnati Entertainment Awards in 2002, scoring New Artist of the Year honors), has announced the forthcoming release of her new album, Songs of Instruction. It is Taylor’s first solo release since 2013’s Love’s…
Roebling to reopen today ahead of schedule; protests over police tasing planned; more news
Hey, Cincy! Have you been outside this morning? Go outside. Take your phone so you can read this news update, and go sit in a park. If your boss tells you have to work, drag her or him outside as well. It is glorious. Phew. Anyway. News. Activists will rally today near the University of Cincinnati…
Provocative Movies on Tap as Mini Microcinema Releases May-June Schedule
Over-the-Rhine's Mini Microcinema has announced its May-June schedule, and it's filled with the kind of programming that cinephiles have been hungering for in Cincinnati. Here are some highlights: • May 1 (Tuesday), Punishment Park: Peter Watkins is one of the great names of contemporary British cinema, mixing dramatic and documentary techniques as he looks at…
Cincinnati’s streetcar saw most blockages ever last month, other challenges
A new report from acting Cincinnati City Manager Patrick Duhaney shows that despite hitting its millionth rider this month, the streetcar still has challenges to address. The transit system missed ridership goals last month, is experiencing big shortfalls in one source of operating funding and saw the most blockages along its route since it launched…
Here is who is winning the money race in Ohio’s gubernatorial primaries
It's been a weird and heated gubernatorial primary season in Ohio as candidates race to win nods from their parties so they can contend for term-limited Gov. John Kasich's seat in November. And all the intensity has translated into a lot of money raised and spent. Today was the deadline for candidates to file pre-primary…
Unemployment in Greater Cincinnati at 17-year low; more news
Hello Cincy! Stuff happened yesterday. Let’s talk about it. Cincinnati’s Emergency Communications Center will get more money to address long-running issues with staffing and technology after the tragic death of Kyle Plush, the 16-year-old who suffocated in his van after calling 911 twice. City council voted yesterday to appropriate more than $450,000 for the 911…
Please Please Please Come Celebrate Cincinnati’s Acquisition of King Records Site in Evanston with Special Beer
Listermann Brewing Company, King Studios and design/print studio We Have Become Vikings today announced they'll launch a beer celebrating the city's recent acquisition of the King Records property in Evanston. It will also honor this year's 75th anniversary of the famous but long-departed record company, which recorded Blues, Country and R&B classics by James Brown,…
Talking with Ashley Capps, the powerhouse promoter behind Homecoming music festival
Yes, this weekend’s outdoor Homecoming festival wouldn’t be happening unless The National — the artful Indie Rock band with a worldwide following — wanted to do something special in the hometown that most of its members left long ago. Or, for that matter, if the group’s guitarist Bryce Dessner — also a busy Classical composer…
