Derek Stinson (guitars/vocals) and Mark Karapondo (bass) of local band Cletus Romp have started a new group with drummer Brian Moeller (also of The Hiders and Liquid Hologram) called 40lbs of Lye. Earlier in February, the trio released the first taste of its dark, swampy, soulful Rock with The Hillbilly Deathtrap Demos, a five-track EP available at most online digital retailers (it is available for free download on Amazon here). This spring, 40lbs of Lye has plans to record its debut full-length as a follow-up.
The band will celebrate the release of The Hillbilly Deathtrap Demos this Friday at the Woodward Theater (1404 Main St., Over-the-Rhine, woodwardtheater.com). The band is part of a triple bill that also includes local acts The Darkhearts and The Stealth Pastille. Tickets are $5 and the show starts at 8:30 p.m. For more on 40lbs of Lye, go to 40lbsoflye.com.
• Jim Pelz, singer/guitarist for the great local Americana/Bluegrass crew Hickory Robot, is releasing his first solo album, the 13-track gem Loser Angels. The album is a great exhibition of Pelz’s ace songwriting talents and timeless sound, effortlessly moving from smoking Country Rock to sublime Roots/Americana balladry and beyond.
The Loser Angels release party is this Saturday at York Street Café (738 York St., Newport, Ky., yorkstonline.com). Pelz will perform with a full band (fittingly dubbed The Loser Angels) and Ben Knight & The Welldiggers and Schlasky! are also on the bill. The cover charge is $7; $10 will get you admission and a copy of the new CD. Showtime is 8 p.m. Visit jimpelz.com for more info.
• Electronic Indie Pop duo Technicolor Monster is releasing a new EP, Foreword, this Friday at all-ages venue The Underground (1140 Smiley Ave., Forest Park, theug.com). The twosome makes a passionate, playful and, yes, colorful sound based around Isaac Cowdrey’s engaging vocals and rainbow-swirl of keyboards and synths and driven by the tight, musical drumming of Logan Hortenberry. Cowdrey and Hortenberry are also working toward releasing the debut Technicolor Monster full-length. Look the band up on indiegogo.com to donate to the crowd-funding campaign for the album.
Doors for Friday’s EP release show, which also features performances by Coal Train Robbery, Jsquared, and The Black Ties, open at 7 p.m. Admission is $8. Find out more about the band here.
Hip Hop for the Children
Last year, Cincinnati Hip Hop artist MC Till (aka Adam Hayden) did the unexpected and released The Neighborhood, an amazing album that brilliantly fused Jazz with Hip Hop rhymes. This year, Hayden is working on another delightful musical curveball — a Hip Hop-centric album (available on vinyl) and book project for children titled The Corner.
The seeds of the project were planted several years ago when his friend, graphic designer/videographer/rapper Vernard Fields, who has worked over a decade with special needs children in the Cincinnati Public Schools system, mentioned to Hayden that he wanted to make a Hip Hop album for kids. In 2012, while Hayden was working as an assistant CPS teacher, he discovered that by rapping some children’s poetry, he quickly and easily captured the attention of the first grade class of which he was in charge. Recalling Fields original suggestion, Hayden got back in touch with him and the pair worked out some material and presented it to an even younger audience (preschoolers), where they were again a big hit. Hayden and Fields then teamed up with illustrator Charlie Padgett to create the visuals for The Corner.
The high-quality book and album will be made available as hard copies and digitally (an app and website are also in the works) and the trio hopes that schools will be interested in using their project in the classroom. The Kickstarter perks offered for the campaign for The Corner include having bundles sent to specific teachers and schools (there’s even an accompanying study guide for teachers).
The ambitious project won’t be cheap to produce; the three artists are currently aiming for more than $48,000 in their Kickstarter campaign. If you’d like to contribute (or would like more info), head over to their kickstarter.com page here.
Submissions Open for MPMF 2015
Musical acts interested in being considered for a showcase slot at the 14th annual MidPoint Music Festival (scheduled for Sept. 24-26 in various venues around downtown and Over-the-Rhine) can begin submitting now.
The festival — which is owned and operated by CityBeat — has announced a new partner for facilitating submissions, switching from Sonicbids to the locally based CloudPressKit. The move will save artists some money — the submission fee for MPMF 2015 is $15 (through Sonicbids, it was $25, plus a Sonicbids membership) — and CloudPressKit is described as more “artist friendly.”
Visit cloudpresskit.com/festivals/mpmf15 for submission details. Applications are being accepted through May 17. For more on the fest, visit mpmf.com.
CONTACT MIKE BREEN :
mbreen@citybeat.com
This article appears in Feb 25 – Mar 3, 2015.