But I do love pie. Except for the Shepherd’s kind.
You can’t spell February without “F-U.”
Let’s warm up our weary bones with some hot live tunes.
Tomorrow night (2/20):
Robert Ellis plays Southgate
Young Heirlooms, Mol Sullivan, and Annie D are at the Northside Tavern
Liberty Theater has a Songwriters in the Round free show with Anthony Ray Wright and Andrew Hibbard
Kim Deal (Pixies, Breeders, Huber Heights, OH) plays a sold-out show at the Woodward Theater on Friday night. I’ll be there, along with list members Mighty Joe, Deuce, Lobby Boy, Matty V, Jarrod, Shay-Shay, and a cavalcade of stars. It’ll be like the greatest episode ever of The Love Boat
Other Friday shows:
Justin Wells has an album release show at Southgate, with Casey Campbell and Adam Lee also on the bill
Susto and Rose Hotel are at Ludlow Garage
Cincy Brass plays a free show at MOTR (9:30)
Jim Trace & the Makers (featuring two of my co-workers) play an album release show at Northside Tavern, with The Electric Indigo and The Laurelys
On Saturday, the Cabin Fever Festival takes over historic Ludlow, KY. I went last year and loved it – it’s a great showcase for the amazing roots/Americana/bluegrass talent in this area, in some really cool venues (including a Funeral Parlor!).
Needless to say, I’m going again this year. (I just hope the funeral home folks don’t try to stick me in a coffin.)
Join me, won’t you? (At the festival, not in the coffin.) Tickets are dirt cheap too – get ’em here.
Other Saturday shows:
Nicholas Jamerson plays Southgate, with Jonathan Peyton as the opener (I really like Jonathan’s latest release)
Mike Detmer has an album release show at Liberty Theater, with Rob L. Ford, and Adam Gilliam
Annie’s hosts Fillmore on the River 2 with the Almond Butter Band and Scarlet Fire
The HercuLeons (feat. Bluegrass Hall of Famer John Cowan and fiddler/vocalist Andrea Zonn) play Ludlow Garage
Memorial Hall has The Drowsy Lads
On Sunday, Mike Oberst and Justine Cefalu play the Rabbit Hash “Music Behind the Stove” series and Tinfoil Hat Cowboys play MOTR.
The Nasty Nati Brass Band is at Memorial Hall on Monday.
On Tuesday, Bronwyn Keith-Hynes (fiddler from Molly Tuttle’s band) is at Southgate, and the Mercantile Library’s Memoir Lecture is from Michelle Zauner, author of Crying in H Mart and also lead singer of Japanese Breakfast. (That appearance is sold-out.)
Taft Theatre has An Evening with Drew and Ellie Holcomb next Wednesday (2/26).
The Joe Stamm Band plays Whiskey City’s Liberty Theater on Thursday, Feb. 27th, with Clint Park as the opener.
The Noah Smith Band is at Liberty Theater on Friday, 2/28, and Southgate has a couple of shows going on that evening:
Eddie Spaghetti and “Metal” Marty Chandler from Supersuckers play the main room (Skunkdog opens)
Logan Ledger plays the Revival Room, with Mason Via.
Lydia Shae, Amy Jo, and Stone & Snow play Southgate’s Revival Room
Helles Belles (all-female AC/DC cover band) play Ludlow
The Blue Note in Harrison hosts Crown Watts: An Evening of Rush
Shows on Sunday, March 2nd:
Burning Caravan plays Rabbit Hash (2pm)
Tommy Castro & the Painkillers are in Southgate’s main Sanctuary
Flamy Grant and Heather Mae play the Southgate Revival Room
Dropkick Murphys are at the Bobby Brady
Comedian John Caparulo plays a 6:30 show at the Woodward
Gigs on Wednesday, March 5th:
Jordan Tice plays the Liberty Theater
Crumbsnatchers play Southgate (bio description: “Hailing from Nashville, Crumbsnatchers’ catchy songs echo the wit of Pixies and Talking Heads, backed by the fervent force of Beastie Boys.”)
It’s WEEN Wednesday at the Columbia – the album featured will be Pure Guava
Life is a carnival. Summer is a festival (or seven).
Bourbon & Beyond has crammed about five festival’s worth of artists into their lineup:
Nelsonville hasn’t announced their full lineup yet, but they had me at Waxahatchee, MJ Lenderman, Dehd, and Low Cut Connie.
Hear, here!
The new album from Ex-Vöid is great!
One of the principals in Ex-Vöid is Owen Williams from The Tubs. I’m obsessed.
Waxahatchee has a new non-album track out (with M.J. Lenderman on guitar and backing vocals). It’s delightful.
And Katie Crutchfield harmonizes with Patterson Hood (Drive-by Truckers) on a track from his upcoming solo release. As list member Mighty Joe Sampson says, “This is the good stuff. Harmonies to melt your ears on a cold winter day.”
“There were a lot of radio stations that had been around. College stations, and then stations like WLIR in New York. So, that was all part of building the firmament, as well. It was a long process. It didn’t just happen out of thin air. And WBCN, and Matt was DJing down in South Jersey. So, that late ’80s through ’91/’92, all of that was critical infrastructure, as well. It’s just funny – you know this and I know this – but there’s sort of a ‘mainstream history,’ like, ‘There was all this hair metal, and then Nevermind came, and it changed.’ There was a lot of people who did a lot of work to get to that point.”
Amen, Brother Bob! Here’s the title track from his upcoming album:
Album Cover of the Week
I picked up this gem of an album, in this condition, note and all, at the Mt. Washington St. Vincent de Paul store. (On “Senior Sunday” when I get a 25% discount!) My best guess is that the two-time owner of the album found someone who DIDN’T like piña coladas and getting caught in the rain.
Uh, not May the 4th… a.k.a. Spock’s birthday. Or maybe his “Life Day.”
The big day is May 10th – members of Wussy are playing a gig at my house. It’s the 3rd appearance for Chuck & Lisa, and to celebrate #3 they’re bringing a third member: Mark Messerly.
Mark and I are twin sons of different mothers – or we just have similar tastes in cool band t-shirts:
BTW, Mark’s solo project INERT has a new album out soon. Here’s the lead track:
But there are plenty of other cool (albeit less exclusive) gigs coming our way in the merry month of May. Let’s eyeball ’em.
Tonight (5/1):
The 502s and Daniel Nunnelee play Bogart’s
Kelsey Waldon is at Southgate
Todd Lipscomb and Easy Mark play MOTR
On Thursday:
The Tillers play the “Tunes & Blooms” gig at the Cincinnati Zoo
Red Wanting Blue plays Southgate
Camp Springs Tavern hosts the bi-weekly Bluegrass Jam
The Breakers (a tribute to Tom Petty… or to ’91 Keanu and Swayze) play Ludlow Garage
Friday night, the Wussy Trio (Chuck, Lisa, Mark) plays The Lodge in Dayton, KY.
That same evening, local Mumford-adjacent band Jim Trace & The Makers plays Arnold’s. That group features two of my co-workers… and a name clearly dreamt up on the bourbon aisle of a liquor store. (Perhaps “Cabooze” – the train caboose retrofitted to be a liquor store that was a famous landmark in Newport, KY.)
Saturday, in the new-Newport, Ovation hosts The Ultimate Doors: a tribute to The Doors. (Now I really miss the old Sin City… and the doors of Cabooze.)
Shows on Tuesday, May 7th:
Rufus Wainwright plays Ludlow Garage
Stiff Little Fingers are at Bogart’s (and also on my pickleball paddle hand)
The Messthetics (drummer Brendan Canty and bassist Joe Lally from Fugazi) play the Woodward. Opener is James Brandon Lewis w/Siren Suit
Kamasi Washington plays Ludlow on Wednesday, 5/8, and EXTC (with XTC drummer Terry Chambers) plays Radio Artifact.
On Thursday, 5/9, it’s time to bust out the pipe.
The Verve Pipe plays the Woodward Theater. That same evening, Tenille Townes (no relation to “Captain &” or “Van Zandt”) plays Ludlow, and Thievery Corporation plays Bogart’s. Thievery Corporation has a pretty cool logo:
Hah, that’s just a little good-natured ribbing there, my IRS friends… no need to audit me for that jibe. My “Cabooze” deductions are research expenses, and therefore completely legit!
On Friday, May 10th, Chuck Cleaver, Lisa Walker, and Mark Messerly of Wussy will be playing in my living room! (A rare occasion when I’m not the only wussy in the house…)
That same evening, Stanley Clarke plays the first of two nights at Ludlow. And Southern Culture on the Skids plays Southgate. Their poster is pretty cool:
Stanley Clarke is back at it on Saturday, 5/11 at Ludlow Garage.
Other 5/11 shows:
Robbie Fulks and Scott Miller play Southgate’s Revival Room (I’ll be at that gig)
Snõõper. Fruit Loops and The Serfs play the Woodward (list member Dave Tellmann’s son Jack produced some Snõõper tracks and has an engineering credit on their new album)
Bendigo Fletcher is in Southgate’s main room
Social Distortion and Bad Religion play the Cindy Brady on Sunday, May 12th, and Tommy Prine plays Southgate.
(My neighbors occasionally listen to live Wussy too!)
They Might Be Giants play a two-night “An Evening with…” stand at the Madison Theater on 5/14 and 5/15. The bill promises “2 very different shows. 8 piece band. 3 horns. 2 sets. 0 openers. Starts early. Gets loud.”
Another cool gig on Wednesday, May 15th is Parker Millsap and Robert Ellis doing the solo acoustic thing at Southgate.
There’s another bluegrass hootenanny at Camp Springs Tavern on Thursday, 5/16. Bring your own instrument.
Also on 5/16, Kraftwerk is playing the Ovation in Newport.
Friday, May 17th is a big night for shows:
The Violent Femmes will play their first two albums in a row during a show at the old Annie’s (I’ll be there. I already bought tickets… I got “two, two, two for my family” but now my son can’t go, so LMK if you want my extra, free of charge.)
The Secret Sisters play Southgate, with special guest Tyler Ramsey, formerly of Band of Horses
The jam band Houseplant plays Madison Theater
Ludlow Garage hosts “Live at the Fillmore – the definitive Allman Brothers tribute”
Saxon and Uriah Heep will rock Bogart’s… well, it’s more like Sagsome and Heap of Urologists now, but still, more power to ’em.
On Saturday, May 18th, the PNC Pavilion opens the shed season with… Brit Floyd… celebrating the 30th anniversary of a post-Roger/”meh” PF album (The Division Bell). (Sigh.) But at least on your way in, you can check out the progress on the destruction of the beloved Coney Island Pool. Maybe this guy can save it:
Webb Wilder closes out the weekend with a 70th Birthday Bash at Southgate House on Sunday, May 19th.
Love it live
Suzanne Vega put on a great show at Memorial Hall, and it was great to see quite a few list members there, including Janet W., who hooked me up with the presale code for Jayhawks tickets. Score!
Alvvays played a great set at Bogart’s. I went with list members “Deuce” and Matt V. List member Mighty Joe Sampson also was there with his 21-year-old daughter Maggie.
The GBV/Wussy show at Madison Theater was top-notch. Great to hear the full Wussy band. List members David and Amy Groff were there, but their daughter Maggie wasn’t… she’d better up her concert game!
John P. Strohm (Blake Babies, Lemonheads, Antenna, Velo-Deluxe) wrote a really nice Substack post about Guided By Voices. Check it out here.
The Far Side said it best
Then again, it beats the alternative. But old age does create some challenges:
