Music: Perfume Genius with The Lone Bellow and Mina Tindl
The cover of Perfume Genius’ third album, 2014’s Too Bright, features frontman/creative ringleader Mike Hadreas clad in a shiny, sleeveless gold-and-silver top that hugs his slight frame. His hair is slicked back and he has a weirdly intent look on his face. There’s a surreal, androgynous vibe to it — like something artist Matthew Barney might…
Event: Pi Day at the Cincinnati Observatory
The mathematical constant Pi (3.14159…) is celebrated annually on March 14 (3-14) — this year especially because it’s 3-14-15, Pi’s first six digits. Pi is heavily used in astronomy, and on Pi Day the Cincinnati Observatory will teach visitors how to measure circumference, area and volumes of the domes and planets using the concept. All…
Art: Drive By Revisited at Ruth’s Parkside Cafe
Photographer Brad Austin Smith shows his series of street photography taken from the inside of his 1960 Buick LeSabre. The series, which Smith calls Drive By Revisited, was previously shown at the Weston Gallery downtown and demonstrates Midwestern nostalgia for the open road as Smith uses his windows and windshields as viewfinders, framing locations recognizable…
Lecture: Digital Fabrication: Realizing the Impossible, From Piranesi to Kapoor
The fascinating world of fast-growing 3D printing is the subject of this year’s Kreines Lecture on Decorative Arts and Design Sunday at Cincinnati Art Museum. Due to recent technological advances, it is now possible to see as fully dimensional some artworks that once were familiar as sketches on paper. The lecture is by Ronald T.…
Event: St. Patrick’s Day Celebration
While not a legal holiday in the United States, St. Patrick’s Day is still a widely observed celebration of Irish and Irish American culture. Festivities are in full swing this year at Fountain Square with two free parties. Start your celebration off with an all-day, family-friendly event Saturday with live Celtic Rock music and Irish…
Onstage: Muse: Women Hold Up More Than Half the Sky
MUSE, Cincinnati’s Women’s Choir, presents “Women Hold Up More Than Half the Sky,” a choral celebration of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day. The program features music from MUSE, plus a panel of presenters who will discuss preventing violence against women, men and children. Speakers include Mary Pierce Brosmer, founder of Women Writing (for)…
Sports: Cincinnati Rollergirls
The Cincinnati Rollergirls kick off their 2015 season with a bout against Akron, Ohio’s NEO Roller Derby at Cincinnati Gardens. All home games are double-headers, featuring the varsity Black Sheep and junior varsity Violent Lambs — plus a lot of body-checking. Expect booty shorts, fishnets, high-energy skating and some friendly competition while these badass bitches…
Event: St. Patrick’s Day at the Irish Heritage Center of Greater Cincinnati
On Saturday, the Irish Heritage Center hosts an after-party following the St. Patrick’s Parade downtown. Starting at 2 p.m., Irish singers, Irish dancers (including the McGing Children and Celtic Rhythm) and fiddle and pipe bands will perform throughout the evening to complement a perfect pint of Guinness, served at the center’s very own Irish pub.…
Event: Circle Tail Dinner: Art and Wine for Canines
The fifth annual Circle Tail Dinner: Art and Wine for Canines meshes art, wine, food and a silent auction to benefit Circle Tail, a nonprofit that provides service and hearing dogs to people with disabilities at no cost to the individual. The event’s art exhibit includes pottery, photography, jewelry and more, and proceeds benefit the…
Event: St. Patrick’s Parade
For 49 years, the Cincinnati St. Patrick’s Parade has traversed downtown — rain, shine or snow — to celebrate the city’s rich Irish heritage. The parade steps off from Eggleston and Reedy at noon and follows a route down Central Parkway, Sycamore Street, Fifth Street and ends at Sentinel. Expect themed floats, lots of leprechaun ephemera,…
Events: A&G Con
A&G Con is a fan-run three-day animation and video gaming convention for those with an interest in everything from Doctor Who and cosplay to Magic the Gathering and anime. There will be an artists alley, a vendor’s room, areas for traditional and e-gaming, karaoke, costume contests, panels, workshops, dances and more. Find a full list…
Music: Cassandra Wilson
One of contemporary Jazz’s greatest song interpreters, dynamic vocalist Cassandra Wilson has a voice that has long been reminiscent of Billie Holiday in the skill, passion and soul evident in every note sung. The Grammy-winning Wilson has tackled a wide range of songs in her successful career, from tunes by Robert Johnson and Hank Williams…
Event: Luck O’ the Irish Mini CANvention
A different way of celebrating St. Patrick, the 39th annual Luck O’ the Irish Mini CANvention is a place to buy, sell and trade historic “breweriana,” or historic signs, cans, lights and other ephemera from beer companies and breweries. The three-day swap meet also features craft beer, a cornhole tournament and raffle. Thursday-Saturday. $5-$15 registration…
Comedy: Kevin Bozeman
Onstage, Kevin Bozeman has a unique voice, drawing humor from everyday life experiences like parenting. “That’s what most of my time goes to,” he says. “I have two boys, and I put a lot of time and energy into my kids. I also dabble in politics and current events.” A huge sports fan, particularly of…
Film: Easter Parade : Classic Film, Live Music
“In your Easter bonnet, with all the frills upon it, you’ll be the grandest lady in the Easter Parade.” Channel your inner Judy Garland and Fred Astaire through the lovely lyrics of Irving Berlin as The Carnegie in Concert takes it back to the 1948 Oscar-winning classic with Easter Parade: Classic Film, Live Music. Two…
Lit: Emerging Fiction Writers Festival
Organized by the ever-discerning University of Cincinnati’s Department of English and Comparative Literature, the annual Emerging Fiction Writers Festival is a smorgasbord for lit junkies, offering multiple authors in an intimate atmosphere. Per usual, this year’s lineup is stellar: Dean Bakopoulos, Alissa Nutting, Ed Park and Nelly Reifler, all of whom deserve to emerge. The…
Onstage: Transmigration Festival
That fancy-sounding title uses a word that means “the movement from one place to another” or “the transition from one state of being to another.” What it’s all about is six teams of actors from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music’s drama program who have created five original 30-minute shows that resemble productions familiar…
Bad Veins Prepare for ‘The Mess Remade’ Release
On Tuesday, March 17, Cincinnati duo Bad Veins will see its latest album, The Mess Remade, released nationally. The 13-track effort isn't an entirely "new" album, but a re-recorded/remastered version of Bad Veins' sophomore full-length, The Mess We've Made, which came out in 2012 on the Modern Outsider label. The record — which features new…
Morning News and Stuff
Morning y’all! Here’s a brief morning news rundown before I jet off to some interviews. The Ohio Task Force on Community-Police Relations met last night at UC for a sometimes intense five-and-a-half-hour listening session. A large group showed up to listen to expert testimony and to speak to the panel themselves. Perhaps the most charged…
Beyond Idol Chatter: Career Goals Well Within Reach
Jess Lamb’s initial performance for the judges on American Idol’s bus tour was undeniably a show stopper. It wrapped up the episode and introduced America to one of Cincinnati’s brightest talents, while also moving her on to the Hollywood round after impressing the judges. Her second televised appearance, a group rendition of Meghan Trainor’s “All About…
Mornings News and Stuff
Hey all! Hope your weekend was great. I spent my Saturday at the Neighborhood Summit, so mine was super fun because I’m a huge dork. If you’re like me and you’re into community building, urban planning, transit, or anything else at all city related, though, it’s kind of like our Midpoint. Highlights included a three-part…
Forgotten Classics: Zulu
When I mention war films, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Probably titles like Saving Private Ryan or, more recently, something like the controversial and much-debated American Sniper. But what if I ask about British war films? Maybe you’d think of Lawrence of Arabia and one or two others. What about the 1964…
Leftovers: What We Ate This Weekend
Each week CityBeat staffers and dining writers tell you what they ate this weekend. We're not always proud — or trendy — but we definitely spend at least some money on food. Jac Kern: This weekend I finally tried my hand at the cauliflower Buffalo "wing" trend. There's plenty of recipes out there (and I'm incapable of following…
Your Weekend To Do List (3/6-3/8)
Lots of booze-based, full-weekend events going on. Bockfest and the Cincinnati International Wine Festival Grand Tastings both kick off tonight — one with a goat and the other with a far classier couple, Gina Gallo of the Gallo wine family and her husband Jean-Charles Boisset, of France's Boisset Family Estates winery. FRIDAY Event: Bockfest Cincinnatians…
Q&A with The Glorious Sons
The Glorious Sons are a strong up-and-coming act out of Canada (Kingston, Ontario, to be exact) with a Rock sound that’s a little rough around the edges, just the way they want it. The band isn’t trying to fit into a cookie cutter world of the music industry but deliver an authentic sound that connects…
Stage Door: Pirates, Indians, Lost Boys and Little Women
I wanted to start today's note about theater opportunities for this weekend by bringing your attention to my CityBeat column here, a tribute to my late friend Tom McElfresh, who passed away in February. Tom was a Cincinnati theater critic in the 1970s and ’80s who I brought on board as my back-up at CityBeat…
U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Ohio Same-Sex Marriage Cases April 28
The U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing that will decide the fate of same-sex marriage bans in Ohio and three other states. On April 28, the court will hear arguments over whether same-sex marriage bans in Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee violate the equal protection clause of the Constitution. Ohio’s ban passed as an…
Rhinegeist to Release Saber Tooth Saturday
If you live for IPAs or are just looking for a reason to get a lil tipsy this weekend, Rhinegeist is releasing its highly sought after and limited Saber Tooth Tiger IPA with a party on Saturday. The "prehistorically hopped" Imperial IPA has a bit of a bite, with notes of papaya, mango, peach and…
Morning News and Stuff
Hello Cincy! Here’s a brief rundown of what’s going on in the news today. As I told you about earlier this week, Cincinnati City Council passed a new dog law that levies steep civil penalties (up to $15,000) for dog owners who don’t control their pets. The law was changed just slightly before passage, cutting…
Film: AKA Doc Pomus
It’s been a long, slow journey for Doc Pomus — who died in 1991 without being widely known by the public — to become recognized as one of Rock & Roll’s greatest songwriters ever. But his cause has gained much momentum recently. One key element is the recent documentary AKA Doc Pomus, which plays Friday…
Unfinished Business
Raunchy workplace comedies are few and far between, yet Vince Vaughn seems eager to resurrect the genre, following up The Internship from a couple of years ago with Unfinished Business, which delves into the crazily absurd risks a small business owner (Vaughn) takes alongside his two inexperienced associates (Tom Wilkinson and Dave Franco). Going up…
Magician
The subtitle of this documentary — The Astonishing Life and Work of Orson Welles — says it all. Nearly 100 years on, we need to examine the truly head-scratching enigma that was Welles, a certifiable movie star of the first order, a director, and ahead of his time as an independent filmmaker. What couldn’t Welles…
Chappie
Short Circuit meets Robocop in the latest science fiction actioner from Neill Blomkamp, the South African filmmaker who has given us District 9 and Elysium, films that defy convention by truly investing the world of science with a surprising degree of offbeat humanity (humor and class conflict, among other elements always find their way into…
The One Talent Competition Show Worth Watching
Before “supermodel of the world” RuPaul debuted her reality drag competition show in 2009, she said, “To be a winner on this show the contestants need to be a fashion designer, an American Idol and a top model all rolled up into one. And they definitely have to be smarter than a fifth grader.” Six years…
Characters Make the ‘Second’ Stay Worth the Trip
During the first installment of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, we spent time with Graham Dashwood (Tom Wilkinson), a withdrawn retiree traveling to Jaipur, India — returning, actually — after a long career and a longing for what he had missed out on in his successful professional endeavors. His story, at first, seemed like nothing…
Songwriter Doc Pomus Featured at ReelAbilities Film Festival
It’s been a long, slow journey for Doc Pomus — who died in 1991 without being widely known by the public — to become recognized as one of Rock & Roll’s greatest songwriters ever. But his cause has gained much momentum recently. One key element is the recent documentary AKA Doc Pomus, which plays Friday…
Just Think About It: Tom McElfresh, 1935-2015
At a CityBeat party 10 years ago an acquaintance pulled me aside and asked earnestly, “When you write a harsh review of a play, do you use a different byline? Is it Tom McElfresh?” My friend Tom was standing about 10 feet from this conversation, so I pointed to him and said, “No, there really…
Honey & Houston Release ‘Barcelona’
Fantastic Northern Kentucky Folk/Country/Americana foursome Honey & Houston celebrate the release of its debut full-length, Barcelona, this Saturday at the Southgate House Revival (111 E. Sixth St., Newport, southgatehouse.com). It will be quite an impressive triple bill featuring three of the area’s best Folk/Roots acts — Young Heirlooms and Arlo McKinley & the Lonesome Sound…
The Gruff (Review)
C incinnati’s dining scene has garnered quite a bit of national attention in the past couple of years, but when critics discuss our city’s burgeoning gastro-tourism, they tend to exclude nearby Covington. For example, when Alton Brown was in town last year for his performance at the Aronoff, he went to a lot of cool…
Puppet Masters
T he art of puppetry is a form of human communication almost as old as storytelling itself, using marionettes and representational figures to tell the same poignant, comedic and inventive tales that actors do onstage. Since ancient Greece and Egypt, every culture has had its own version of puppet theater, from Iran’s decades-old international Tehran…
Cleveland: Unarmed 12-Year-Old Responsible for His Own Death
The family of Tamir Rice, the 12-year-old boy shot by the Cleveland Police Department in November, is up in arms after the City of Cleveland last week said in a court filing that the unarmed boy was responsible for his own death. The filing states that Rice’s death was caused by “failure to exercise ……
Council Poised to Pass New Non-Breed-Specific Dog Ordinance
UPDATE 03/05: Council passed the ordinance creating large civil fines for dog owners whose dogs injure others, but stripped criminal penalties from the law because they duplicated or exceeded state laws already on the books. After high-profile dog attacks over the past year, Cincinnati City Council is poised to pass a new law aimed at…
Bottoms Up?
D owntown Cincinnati could soon get 21 more liquor licenses under a new proposal pending state approval. Boosters, including Mayor John Cranley and Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation, say the extra licenses gained by defining much of downtown as two Community Entertainment Districts will boost economic development and create jobs. But the plan has brought…
Cincinnati vs. The World 3.4.15
Only 35 percent of Americans still find embattled Fox News host Bill O’Reilly trustworthy, while 21 percent now find him “very untrustworthy,” according to a recent HuffPost/YouGov poll. Several accusations have been made against the conservative host in recent weeks claiming that he embellished or lied while covering wars and conflicts. World +1 In a…
Worst Week Ever!: Feb. 25-March 3
Is Filming a Reality Show in the Justice Center a Good Idea? Watch and See! People in America like to talk about how snitches and rats are bad until they themselves become defendants facing dozens of years in a cell and then decide snitching and not being in prison sound just fine. Such was the…
What Can Brown Do For You?
P ieta Brown’s decision to go into the family business was not one to be taken lightly. Her father, Greg Brown, is among the most acclaimed and respected artists in contemporary Folk, compiling an amazing 30-plus-album catalog in his five-decade career. If that wasn’t daunting enough, just as Pieta’s musical journey began, her father married…
Morning News and Stuff
Hey all. Let’s get this news thing going before the snow comes once again and grinds everything to a halt. Or just dusts the ground with a little inconvenient powder, depending on how much you trust weather forecasters. Yesterday I told you a bit about 3CDC’s presentation to City Council’s Economic Development and Infrastructure Committee.…
New Music Tuesdays to Become New Music Fridays
HOT: Thank God It’s Tuesday Friday For reasons few agree upon, new music releases have been coming out on Tuesdays in the U.S. for decades, while other countries have different new-release days (Mondays in the U.K., Wednesdays in Japan and Fridays in Germany and elsewhere, for example). But starting this summer, Fridays will be the…
Permanent Pop Up
W hat does Over-the-Rhine mean to you? Is it a stoplight point on your way to work, just a weekend dining destination, or is it a place you can call home? How could the neighborhood’s movement from the old to the new OTR be personified? Meet Levi Bethune, co-owner of Simple Space, a dedicated pop-up…
