Hello, Children of the Sun,

I hope the dog days of summer are treating you well. I’m experiencing a bit of festival fatigue after a couple days at Bellwether, but it was totally worth it. I really enjoyed Cake, Guided by Voices, Real Estate, Pinback Sego, STRFKR and Cold War Kids. Beach House sounded great, but they had the stage lit (or rather, unlit) so that you couldn’t really see them… I’m not into shadow puppets. A few list members attended the Railbird Festival in Lexington, and that had a killer lineup. And list member Dave Tellmann was down in Nashville checking out Violent Femmes and Ben Folds.

Breaking news: we have our first concert review! List member Dan Bockrath breaks down the energetic set from Guided By Voices at Bellwether. Check it out here. The post also includes some stellar photography from Gene Dow (a friend of Dan’s from college, and, as Cincinnati fate would have it, an old co-worker of mine at an ad agency).

OK, on to this week’s gigs. On Monday, it’s An Evening with Foreigner at Rose Music Center. These days, an evening with Foreigner means an evening with Mick Jones (not The Clash/Big Audio Dynamite guy, but the founding member/guitarist for Foreigner) and a bunch of folks he hired in 2003 to keep his income coming in. ( They are putting together a tour book and you can submit your memorabilia:

We’re gearing up to put together the first Foreigner tour book in many years and we’re asking you, our most loyal fans, for help. We’d like to feature an assortment of memorabilia spanning the band’s career in the tour book and are seeking high res scans of Foreigner memorabilia circa 1977 to the present–U.S and foreign magazine covers, covers of vintage tour books, foreign picture sleeves, record company promotional photos, backstage passes, personal photos you took of the band in concert that are high quality, etc.

(source: https://www.foreigneronline.com/news) 

I saw Foreigner and Billy Squier at Barton Coliseum in Little Rock, Arkansas back in June of 1981, but the only souvenir I got was a hangover from the Mickey’s Big Mouths that I drank in the parking lot before the show.

Tuesday, Cincinnati’s youngest piano maestro (Ben Levin) is doing a solo show at Cincinnati’s oldest bar (Arnold’s). I wonder if they serve Mickey’s Big Mouths…

On Wednesday, the Stray Cats 40th Anniversary tour struts into Rose Music Center (see what we did there?). Front Country and the Cave Twins are at Southgate, and Jeremy Clyde (of Chad & Jeremy fame) is at York Street. Where’s Chad, you ask? From what I understand, Chad has been hanging in Florida since 2000.

Thursday, Robbie Fulks plays Woodward Theater, with Maria Carelli as the opener. Canadian duo Madison Violet is at Southgate, the Chris Comer Trio entertains tennis fans at the W&S tourney in Mason, and Iron Maiden rocks Riverbend. Good old Eddie still shreds.

Perhaps by Thursday you’ll be over your festival fatigue, because the Birds of a Feather Music & Arts Festival kicks off at “the beautiful Thornhill Dragstrip” (gotta love PR folks) in Morning View, KY . Rumpke Mountain Boys, Goose, Restless Leg String Band and several other bands are on the bill. And there’s morning yoga for all those campers who managed to set up their tent on a rock or tree root. In other words, it’s for all campers.

Friday, John Paul White is at Southgate… for real this time, it’s the rescheduled show from a month ago when JPW was illing. Caleb Elliott is the opener. Ben Levin brings his backing band the Heaters to Arnold’s (they don’t serve Mickey’s – I checked). The Chris Comer Trio plays the Findlay Market Biergarten at happy hour (5-7 p.m.). Wicked Peace — stars of a living room show at Parlor & Patio a few months back — are at Jerzee’s Pub & Grill in Newport. Meanwhile, Chris Staples is playing a living room show through Undertow (same company that booked Eric Bachmann at my house). I don’t know much about Mr. Staples (pretty sure he’s no relation to Pops or Mavis), but this KEXP session is pretty sweet. Looks like the show will be in the Northside area.

Friday is also Grateful Dead Night at the Reds game. Local jam band Spookfloaters (featuring my wife’s cousin Mike on guitar and vocals) are playing the pre-game concert, and they’ll be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Dead’s Woodstock performance by playing that entire set (and more!).

List member Dan “Aristides 4-4 ever!” Lewis would like to remind you that if you cough up some extra cash for the Grateful Dead ticket package, you can get a Dancing Bear Bobblehead.

Spookfloaters are back at it Saturday, playing Fretboard Brewing from 7-9 p.m. Chelsea Ford & The Trouble are at Camp Springs Tavern, Castlecomer is at Madison Live, Chris Comer Trio plays Padrino in Milford, Mike Zito and Johnny Fink play Southgate’s main room, and Ricky Nye Inc. featuring Blake Taylor is playing the Southgate Lounge.

Saturday is also the Ludlow Garage 50th Anniversary Reunion, a free show in Eden Park’s Seasongood Pavilion. That gig is organized by Jim Tarbell, who used to book the original Ludlow Garage back in the day [Kinks, Allman Brothers, Stooges, Dr. John, Staples Singers (no relation to Chris Staples), Santana, et al.]. He also booked the first Grateful Dead gig in Cincinnati, and later became a vice-mayor and mural model. Here’s the show lineup:

Jim Tarbell used to own Arnold’s. I bet he served Mickey’s Big Mouths!

Ricky Nye keeps the party going Sunday, playing Wiedemann Brewery & Taproom. He’ll be playing solo, but not so-low that you can’t hear him.

That same evening, Korn and Alice in Chains are at Riverbend.

JD Simo plays Southgate, and the Downtowne Listening Room is hosting Icecreamapalooza with Matt Waters and Sami Riggs. That show is sold out… but you can attend the backup Icecreamapalooza next to my fridge. BYOB (bring your own butterscotch).

Hot ticket alert: Houndmouth is playing Southgate on Friday, November 22nd and Saturday, November 23rd.

From the TWILM mailbag, list member “Mighty Joe” Sampson commented on our mention of the time he prevented the Goo Goo Dolls from beating up the sound guy at Day in Eden back in 1993:

The far greater crime committed by the Goos has been on display for past 20 years: shift from great punk pop albums of late 80’s through early 90’s to present day adult contemporary elevator music. I still dig those early Goo records most notably Superstar Car Wash is killer.

And while I hate to end on a sad note, we do need to mention the passing of David Berman of Silver Jews (and the recent Purple Mountains album). Here’s my post about it, and you really should read the recent article from The Ringer about David. Big shout-out to list member Jay Stowe for this comment on the blog:

Thanks for this, Damian. I got to know David a bit in college and briefly afterwards in New York. The bond was basically music. He was an occasional deejay at WTJU in Charlottesville during school; I credit him (and Bob Nastanovich) with introducing me to a ton of great bands. He had a unique view of the world we live in, and despite his struggles, came at it with a dry wit from a refreshingly skewed angle. He also had a beautiful way with words. He told me one time about sitting across the table from Kim Gordon after a Sonic Youth show at Trax in C’ville; he said she had the look of a “sultry tigress.” I called him once when I was an editor at Outside and asked him if he’d write an “epic poem” about America for a travel package. It was a fairly dopey idea, but he indulged me kindly. He had a generous spirit, a wonderful sense of the absurd, and some darkness that followed him around. All of which made him, in my eyes, one of the most eloquent voices of my generation. It hurts to think he’s gone.

Hear, hear, Jay… R.I.P. David.

“Half hours on earth… what are they worth?”