It was another great celebration of the Greater Cincinnati music scene Sunday, Jan. 25 at Covington’s Madison Theater as CityBeat presented the Cincinnati Entertainment Awards for the 18th straight year.
Sara Celi from Fox 19 hosted the event and kept things rolling nicely (a tough feat given the numerous performances and award presentations). Nominees Mad Anthony opened things up with a great, crisp set of hearty, soulful Rock before awards in 19 different categories were doled out. Sixteen of the categories are voted on by the public (more than 100,000 people voted this year, a CEA record); the Album of the Year, New Artist of the Year and Artist of the Year categories are decided by the CEA nominating committee.
The Cliftones took the stage after winning the World Music/Reggae CEA, playing a strong mini-set that featured surprise guest Brian Newman, a CCM grad who now has built a following in New York City and plays trumpet on Lady Gaga’s Jazz projects (including her recent work with Tony Bennett). It was a nice nod to local musicians who have gone on to bigger things but still keep Cincinnati music in their hearts.
Elliott Ruther from the Cincinnati Music Heritage Foundation (which received a portion of the proceeds from CEA ticket sales) talked about some of the work the organization has done in the past year, reminding audience members that Cincinnati has been a great music town for generations. Ruther showed a clip from singer/songwriter/guitarist Danny Adler’s DVD in which he actually performs songs at the dilapidated original site of King Records and also brought out legendary drummer (who played on many hit King sides) Philip Paul, who further connected the past to the present. “[King Records] is something that set the standard for what Cincinnati has today,” Paul said.
Young Heirlooms mesmerized with a stellar set of gorgeous, impassioned Americana/Folk. The group brought out Arlo McKinley and Sarah Davis from fellow Folk/Americana nominees Arlo McKinley & the Lonesome Sound to play a beautiful rendition of McKinley’s song “Wild Horses.” It was a great show of camaraderie that fit perfectly with the CEAs’ efforts to be less “competition” and more “celebration.”
There were plenty of repeat CEA winners (including The Dopamines, Buggs Tha Rocka and Molly Sullivan), but the night had its fair share of artists winning their first CEA. First-time nominees-turned-winners included 90 Proof Twang, Dream Tiger, Under New Order and Honeyspiders.
Hard Rock/Metal CEA nominees Zebras in Public played a hard-hitting, energetic set that showcased their wide-ranging influences and great audience rapport. The Whiskey Shambles capped off a very busy week, playing the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tenn. (where, as bassist James Czar pointed out, five of the 16 global finalists hailed from Ohio), then knocking out a solid set at the CEA show. The band’s efforts were rewarded — right after their set the Shambles scored the CEA in the Blues category.
After DJ Ghost ran through a few old-school jams to warm up the stage, Buggs Tha Rocka took the CEA stage to tear through a few tracks from his recent Hip Hop masterwork, Scattered Thoughts of an American Poet, bringing out a pair of Cincinnati Ballet dancers for the appropriately-titled “Celebration for Us.” Dark Colour played a groovy set of its unique Indie Electronic stylings, while theatrical Prog Pop crew Injecting Strangers helped bring the show to a close with an excellent, high-energy performance.
Wussy’s “North Sea Girls” clip won the Best Music Video CEA and the band’s multi-instrumentalist Mark Messerly accepted, noting that the members had nothing to do with the clip and thanking the director, Rich Tarbell. Wussy members were very much responsible for their breakthrough LP, Attica!, which scored glowing reviews from numerous high-profile press outlets and helped the band land a segment on CBS This Morning and sell out shows across the country. The full-length scored the Album of the Year CEA and Wussy capped off the CEA show by winning Artist of the Year honors.
Here’s the full list of the 2015 CEA winners:
World Music/Reggae: The Cliftones
Jazz: Blue Wisp Big Band
Singer/Songwriter: Molly Sullivan
Country: 90 Proof Twang
Punk/Pop Punk: The Dopamines
Indie/Alternative: The Yugos
Rock: Buffalo Killers
Electronic: Dream Tiger
Blues: The Whiskey Shambles
Bluegrass: Rumple Mountain Boys
Folk/Americana: The Tillers
Metal/Hard Rock: Electric Citizen
R&B/Funk/Soul: Under New Order
Hip Hop: Buggs Tha Rocka
Best Live Act: The Almighty Get Down
Best Music Video: Wussy’s “North Sea Girls” (directed by Rich Tarbell)
New Artist of the Year: Honeyspiders
Album of the Year: Wussy’s Attica!
Artist of the Year: Wussy
CONTACT MIKE BREEN: mbreen@citybeat.com
This article appears in Jan 28 – Feb 3, 2015.
