Music Tonight: Now that the full schedule for this September’s MidPoint Music Festival has been announced, come down to Fountain Square for this evening’s free MidPoint Indie Summer concert to discuss the lineup with other MPMFers and maybe score some tips on who to check out when the fest rolls around in less that two months. Fronted by singer/guitarist Davey von Bohlen, formerly of influential band The Promise Ring, tonight’s Indie Summer headliner is Maritime (read more in CityBeat’s preview here), who are joined by local rockers The Dukes and The Yugos for the 7 p.m. show. Below enjoy Maritime’s video for the catchy “Paraphernalia” off the Wisconsin group’s debut for Dangerbird Records, this year’s Human Hearts.—-
• One of the last additions to the MidPoint 2011 schedule was Cheyenne Marie Mize, an ambient Indie Folk singer/songwriter from the fertile Louisville music scene. You can catch a preview of Mize’s MPMF performance tonight when she headlines the Southgate House Ballroom with guests Lauren Houston and The Seedy Seeds’ Margaret Darling. Showtime is 9:30 p.m. and tickets are $10 at the door. Read more in CityBeat’s preview here.
• The unique musical event Turntables-N-Snares returns for its second annual affair tonight at The Mockbee. The event from Clifton Heights Music Festival organizer Far-I-Rome Productions debuted last year and features living, breathing mash-up performances that combine a DJ with various live, local bands. The 9 p.m. show includes such pairings as The Jive Turkeys vs. DJ Pillo, The Plastic Inevitables vs. DJ Positronic, SHADOWRAPTR vs. djdq, Pharoah Loosey vs. DJ Benigma and DJ Aaron Glorius vs. Electro Rock & Roll duo Pop Empire (featured in the below video clip using the great outdoors as a recording studio). The show is 18-and-up and admission is just $7. Click here for details.
(Leave your suggestions/promote yourself or your favorites by telling everyone about your favorite music event recommendations for the day in the comments below.)
Momentous Happenings in Music History for Aug. 12
Did Hair Metal help bring down the Soviet Union or did the Soviet Union help bring down Hair Metal? On Aug. 12,1989, the milestone two-day Moscow Music Peace Festival kicked off. The stadium concert featured the poofy mullets of Bon Jovi, Ozzy Osbourne, Motley Crue, Skid Row, Scorpions, Cinderella and Soviet Rock band Gorky Park and signaled a big cultural shift in the communist nation. It is noted for being the first concert in the Soviet Union that allowed the audience members to stand up and dance during the performance.
It was also a precursor to the fall of both communism (the Soviet Union was dissolved in December, 1991) and the dominance of Hair Metal in music (Nirvana’s Nevermind was released in September, 1991). The concert was reportedly a disaster behind-the-scenes. Besides spreading a message of world peace, the event also promoted the country’s campaign against drug abuse, though history would reveal many of the performers were at the height of their own drug addictions at the time. Ozzy Osbourne spoke out against drugs in his post-concert press concert, then
