After a successful debut year, Frank Hulefeld, manager of Covington all-ages club Radio Down, is pulling up stakes and looking for a new venue. The club has become a popular venue for touring acts and home to shows by a multitude of local Rock, Indie and Punk acts seeking a venue where they can perform in a good room for "underage" fans. Hulefeld reportedly hopes to open a new, larger venue, also in the Covington area.
The club's last shows take place this weekend. Saturday, touring Punk faves The Queers will close the joint down, but the last all-local show goes down Friday. Esteemed local bands Junior Revolution, Crybaby, Death In Graceland, Mint6Ten and Humans Bow Down are slated to perform. Echoing the sentiment of many local acts, Crybaby's Jon Ford recently said in an e-mail, "Many of us feel that this club was important in helping out many local bands and was a great place for all ages to come and hang out." (radiodown.com)
Music For Justice
The Cincinnati Chapter of Amnesty International presents a benefit concert on Friday at the Southgate House. Timed to Tibetan National Uprising Day (commemorating the day in 1959 when nearly 100,000 protesting Tibetans were slaughtered by Chinese troops), the "Concert For a Free Tibet" will raise money for both Amnesty International (amnesty.org) and the Save Tibet campaign (savetibet.org). The concert features a diverse lineup, including sets from locals Goodnight Satellite, Me or the Moon, The Thirteens, Roanoke Ramblers and Michael John Mollo.
Chicago R&B/ Funk/Rock/Jazz group Ascendance and Indianapolis' Celtic-influenced Arminta are also slated to perform. The show starts at 9 p.m. and admission is $5.
Summit Sounds
Indianapolis' Midwest Music Summit, an annual music showcase/conference in the mold of South By Southwest and our own MidPoint Music Festival, is coming to the Greater Cincinnati area to check out what the local scene has to offer. In an effort to be more hands-on with potential showcase acts, the MMS has set up several regional showcases where local artists (largely chosen by the participating club's management) strut their stuff for a slot at the festival, which takes place in July. The MMS organizers also say this is a good opportunity for other acts to come and network. Artists wishing to participate in the actual Summit are encouraged to drop off press kit/demo submissions (check the MMS Web site for instructions on how to submit online).
York Street Café in Newport is the home of the first regional MMS showcase (others are planned for Minneapolis, Denver and Louisville). On Friday, Kristen Keys, Turnbull AC's, Dr. Jones, 500 Miles to Memphis, Chaselounge and The Stapletons perform. Saturday's showcasers include Wojo, Campfire Crush, Cari Clara and The Light Wires (Indy's Margo and the Nuclear So and So's and America Owns the Moon also appear). Music starts at 9 p.m. each night and admission is $7. (midwestmusicsummit.com)
Rumors, Lies and General Misunderstandings
· The Southgate House's upstairs parlour room is the site for "an evening of short and vicious sets" from experimental acts from around the world. The international affair features Australian Noise "maniac" Justice Yeldham (who will be joined by Mexico's Sara Galaxia), Madison, Wisconsin's Right Arm Severed, Chicago's Life Rocks! and Columbus' Sweatersplash, plus locals Realicide and Dayton's Ultra//Vires. The show starts at 9 p.m.; admission is $6.
· Local riverside club Annie's has found its sea legs again and has started hosting events following a temporary shut-down due to flooding. Friday night, the club hosts a night of Hard Rock, featuring local acts Detached, Rootbound, Last Reaction, Project Axiom, Elanore and 7 Day Sun.
· Local music veteran Roger Yeardley has joined the "Americana-meets-Jam-band-meets-Hard-Rock" crew Red Idle. The singer/songwriter/bassist becomes the fifth songwriter in the band, and he says he hopes to work some of his material in as they go along. Yeardley makes his official debut as a full-time member of Red Idle this weekend, as the band plays Fat Fish Blue in Newport on Friday and Saturday. (redidle.com)
