Cincinnati is no stranger to being a music city, with a rich history of record labels, venues, legendary performances and a long list of influential underground (and not so underground) bands and musicians.
Some of the current contributors to this history are carrying on a tradition that can be traced back to the ’70s (as exemplified by the 2019 Hozac Records compilation, “We Were Living in Cincinnati: Punk and Underground Sounds From Ohio’s Queen City 1975-82”) and are creating and influencing each other as any great creative community does. They exist in a line of generations of musicians and the crowds and characters that surround them, cutting records and playing venues across the city and, often, expanding beyond it.
Bridget Battle and Jerry Westerkamp are two of the most prominent figures in this world in recent years. Touring nationally and internationally, releasing records on respected labels, and helping keep the local music scene alive. Battle is the singer, guitar player and songwriter of Tweens, the lipstick-smeared, bubblegum “Trash Pop” band with a delicate, soaring 1960s girl group sound. Westerkamp is the lead vocalist, guitar player, and principal songwriter of Vacation, one of the prolific keepers of Cincinnati ‘s Rock & Roll flame.
In their own words, Battle and Westerkamp feel the “thread” of Cincinnati’s past and are “carrying the torch” for its future.
On the heels of their recent performance together, which kicked off Vacation’s tour, CityBeat spoke with them about future plans and the history of Cincinnati’s music scene. Sitting at the corner bend of the well-worn bar at Junkers Tavern in Northside, Battle and Westerkamp talked about moving things forward and giving back, even in earlier days. While living together as roommates in a house on Kirby Avenue in Northside, the idea soon came to make more use of the house — hosting shows several times a month with bands from the network of creatives touring various cities in the region and beyond.
“I think the reason too, you (Westerkamp) probably even thought about having shows in the basement is because there were a lot of DIY spaces and a lot of them started closing,” Battle says. “It felt like there needed to be something…so they live on.” Westerkamp continued, saying, “Yeah, you gotta carry the torch. On Hamilton (Avenue in Northside), the beauty supply store, now, used to be The Void and that was where I would go when I was a kid. I saw so many life-changing shows there…I always wanted to give back if I had a space to do that stuff.”
On the subject of the city itself and its growing creative community, Battle says, “I think there’s a lot of really cool things that come out of Cincinnati because you have to work harder.” For his part, Westerkamp, illustrated the city’s appeal to artists. “It’s strange, I’ve had so many friends move here over the past couple of years. One of my good friends, Jamie (of the band Dog Heaven), made the trip across the pond to live here. He was living in London…I have so many people coming to town to record with me (in his studio The Checkered Flag) or play shows over the years, they’re like ‘oh, this is actually, like, a cool mecca of things happening.’ There’s no other Junkers anywhere else.”
While talking about the city’s music history, like The Stooges’ infamous performance at the 1970 Pop Festival, and bands connected to Cincinnati like The Chrome Cranks and The Greenhornes, the conversation moved toward whether or not that tradition is continuing. “Absolutely…I feel, like, that thread. I was thinking about that, to myself, the other day,” Battle says. “Billy (from Shake It Records) found a leftover Hozac Cincinnati compilation (“We Were Living in Cincinnati: 1975-82”) for me and I was listening to it and I’m like, ‘this sounds like me and my friends’ bands. This is so cool.’”
Westerkamp is also excited for the future of Cincinnati’s music scene. “I feel, yes, we’re carrying the torch, for sure, but I’m wondering, like, what’s next?” For bands like Tweens and Vacation, that’s an exciting place to be — especially coming out of a pandemic with a thriving creative community intact that has been able to build off a rich past. It’s hard to know just what’s next, but considering the past and present, it’s safe to say there will be plenty more coming. In fact, both Tweens and Vacation have new records in the works (no release dates are set for the records, as of April 23). As the late Sean Morrissey, leader of the legendary Cincinnati band The Cincinnati Suds would say, “The wild blast must go on.”
Tweens will be performing on Saturday, April 23 at Shake It Records in Northside for Record Store Day at 7 p.m. Vacation is wrapping up a tour that same night in Indianapolis and have May blocked off to make their next record. They will take a break to perform May 11 at (DSGN)Cllctv in Northside with Truth Cult (from Baltimore) and locals, Slut Bomb. Do yourself a favor, because this world is an experiential one, and get out both nights to see their shows.
Tweens will be performing at 7 p.m. on April 23 at Shake It Records, 4156 Hamilton Ave., Northside. More info: facebook.com/shakeitrecords.
Vacation will be performing on May 11 at (DSGN)Cllctv, 4148 Hamilton Ave., Northside. More info: facebook.com/vacationohio.
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This article appears in Apr 20 – May 3, 2022.