The ongoing saga of locally-spawned music and broadcasting legacy WOXY continues and, once again, the station has been forced off the "air" (or Internet, as the case is) due to financial problems.

Read More

MPMF news and musings: The official MPMF.12 "Kick Off Celebration" is set for Wednesday, Sept. 26, in the Hanke Building just off Main St. (215 Michael Bany Way, between 12th and Reading). The free, open-to-all (21-and-up) party starts at 6 p.m. and will feature music from DJ Ice Cold Tony (who will be laying down some mash-ups featuring MPMF artists) and great Cincy rockers 500 Miles to Memphis will blow the rest of the roof off with a set starting at 9 p.m. There will be giveaways, free Vitaminwater, free Eli's BBQ (while it lasts) and a chance to win a pair of VIP tickets to the CityBeat-sponsored New Year's Eve blow-out at Bogart's featuring music by The Afghan Whigs.

And now, with the countdown down to just 8 days, here are our daily MidPoint Music Festival 2012 picks …

BIG SHOT
Tennis (Denver, CO)
Indie Pop
It’s been a breakthrough year for Colorado Indie trio Tennis, starting with the winter release of its stellar (and highly anticipated) sophomore full-length, Young and Old, on Fat Possum Records. After touring its comparatively lo-fi, critically-lauded debut Cape Dory (crafted by core duo Alaina Moore and Patrick Riley), the duo took its vintage Pop songs into the studio with The Black Keys’ Patrick Carney, who helped give the songs a more direct punch (resulting in the addition of a drummer to the fold). Where acts like Best Coast and Jesus and Mary Chain rewire the classic Pop of the ’60s, Tennis write songs that often recall the ballads of ’50s Pop, something more evident and effective on Young and Old, which charted well and performed exceptionally at college radio. The band’s songs have been used on TV shows like Grey’s Anatomy and are becoming favorites in the fashion world, and they’ve also made a fan out of the Republican (one of "the good ones") daughter of an almost-President, Meghan McCain, who tweeted her joy that Tennis had become the soundtrack to her summer this earlier this year.
You'll Dig It If You Dig: Lesley Gore, Dusty Springfield, the house band for Mad Men (if they had one). (Mike Breen)

Tennis performs at the Know Theatre on the Bioré Strip's Main Stage Saturday, Sept. 29, at 11:45 p.m. Here's Tennis' clip for their swoony tune "Pigeon."



SLEEPER PICK
The Bonesetters (Muncie, IN)
Indie Rock
Bonesetters don’t necessarily sound like a lot of bands but they fit well in the Midwestern construct of talented groups crafting a complex sound out of relatively simple ingredients. Sparse guitar melodies, both plugged and unplugged, are appointed with spartan rhythmatism, unexpected instrumental counterpoints (mariachi trumpet, keening violin, gentle vibes, wheezing harmonium) and a quiet sense of Indie Rock urgency on Savages, Bonesetters’ full-length debut from late last year. It’s easy to understand why Muncie loves Bonesetters, it’s harder to understand why they don’t play here all the bloody time.
Dig: Clem Snide, My Morning Jacket and Gomez making high lonesome carnival Surf Rock for emo hodads. (Brian Baker)

The Bonesetters perform Thursday in Washington Park at 5 p.m. Here's the band's debut album, which you can sample below, then download the whole shebang for free.


LOCAL LOCK PICK
The Dukes Are Dead (Cincinnati, OH)
Rock & Roll
If you’re a local Rock fan who has yet to catch a live show from exciting Cincinnati foursome The Dukes Are Dead, you’ve missed out on some great shows … and you only have this one more before The Dukes Are Dead are dead. In just a couple of years — first as “The Dukes,” before adding “Are Dead” to avoid confusion with the 17,000 other bands with the same name — the foursome amassed a loyal following and even got into theater, becoming the house band for the local staging of “Rock musical” Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson. Though the band’s last show (sure to be a debauched blow-out) is this one at MPMF, there is hope for fans — in their farewell note on Facebook, it was announced that the members will each continue to pursue making music in the future.
Dig: No-nonsense Rock & Roll, bands with names that turn out to be prophetic. (MB)

The Dukes Are Dead's final show is Saturday, Sept. 28, at 8:30 p.m. at The Drinkery. The kind gentlemen of The Dukes are also giving fans some final recorded music as a parting gift — sample below then click on the player to download your free copy of the five-track EP, Before We Died.


Click here for full MPMF details via the official MidPoint site.

Later this month, successful Cincinnati singer/songwriter Kim Taylor will be headed to Park City, Utah, but not as part of any kind of concert tour. Taylor will be attending the annual Sundance Film Festival, one of the world's most prestigious film events, along with the other actors and participants from the new movie, I Used to Be Darker. The film was co-written and directed by Matt Porterfield, whose previous work, Putty Hill, drew scores of rave reviews.

Despite it being her first foray into acting, Taylor has a leading role in the film, playing a musician named Kim whose marriage and relationship are falling apart just as her troubled niece shows up on her doorstep looking for a place to crash. Taylor's husband in the film is played by Ned Oldham, brother of cult music star Will Oldham and also a musician (along with solo work, he's the singer for the bands The Anomoanon and Old Calf).

Taylor knew the film's screenwriter, Amy Belk, from when she attended college in the ’90s in her home state of Florida.

"I met Kim Taylor in the ‘90s when we were both teenagers at Bible college in Florida, shortly before I got kicked out and she flunked out," Belk writes in the press materials for IUTBD. "She is the only person I still know from that strange, balmy with a chance of fire-and-brimstone time. I’ve followed her music career through the years, and shared her songs with Matt (Porterfield) when we started writing. He fell for them like I knew he would, particularly 'Days Like This' and 'American Child.' Even before Matt met Kim and had her read for the role, her music and grace informed the story we were crafting. In many ways, Kim was Kim from the start."

Taylor performs "Days Like This" (which was covered by Over the Rhine on their The Long Surrender album) and "American Child" (from her album Little Miracle) in the film. She and Oldham will be featured on the movie's soundtrack alongside tracks from several acts based in Baltimore, Porterfield's current hometown, including The Entrance Band, Dope Body and Dustin Wong.

I Used To Be Darker premieres at Sundance on Jan. 19 and screens multiple times throughout the fest. Click here for more on the film. Here's the trailer:

I USED TO BE DARKER // TRAILER from Marc Vives on Vimeo.

Taylor has completed her new album, Love's A Dog, which will include the Darker Mix version of "American Child."  The album is tentatively scheduled for release in February or March.

There’s been a lot of new announcements from the MidPoint Music Festival in the past couple of days. Below is an update of the latest info. Wanna discuss further? Come on out to tonight’s MidPoint Indie Summer Series kick-off concert on Fountain Square. The free, all-ages show kicks off at 7 p.m. with Lydia Burrell, followed by Javelin and Cincy’s own You, You’re Awesome (which is using the occasion to celebrates its brand new full-length, Good Point, Whoever Said That).

Read More

Cincinnati-bred band Heartless Bastards were all over the TV this weekend. Along with the group's stellar Austin City Limits debut Saturday (where the band showcased its diversity with the addition of fiddle and acoustic and lap steel guitar on a few songs), the Bastards appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live Friday night.

Read More

Southwestern Ohio native Greg Dulli and his band The Twilight Singers can cross "Play Letterman" off of the To Do list of promo duties for the group's new album, Dynamite Steps. Just as they did on Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show in February, the band played the elegant rocker "On the Corner" on The Late Show last night. The single also has a new accompanying music video (watch both below). Letterman — a notoriously big lover of music both new and classic — appears to be a Twilights fan, calling them a "wonderful Rock & Roll band" in his intro and seeming genuinely pumped up when he shook hands with each member after the song (if you've watched Dave long enough, you can tell when he truly loves the musical acts that appear on his show and when he couldn't care less about them).

Read More

Born-and-bred Cincinnatian Bootsy Collins is now a university president/founder. The Funk music pioneer has announced the launch of Bootsy Collins Funk University, an "online bass guitar school." The "campus" opens July 1 and promises online lessons from "Professor Collins" and a host of "the finest bassists in music."

Read More

The New York Times published a story in the paper's arts section today about the history of Cincinnati-based King Records and those around town who have made it their mission to put the once-vital label back in the spotlight. The story mentions everyone from old-school King artists James Brown, Charlie Feathers and Nina Simone to current-day champions John Cranley, Elliott Ruther and Brian Powers.

RJ Smith, the author of the piece entitled "Rocking Cincinnati's R&B Cradle," was on hand for the King Records memorial back in mid-November, as well as the Cincinnati Entertainment Awards, presented by the good peeps at CityBeat, later that night.

Read More

Sad to report this morning that Joe Maier, former bassist for popular local instrumental Post Rock band Johnnytwentythree, passed away suddenly on June 19. He was just 31 years old.

Maier and his brother, guitarist Michael Maier, formed the band Halo in the late ’90s, which featured drummer Stephen Imwalle. The three formed Johnnytwentythree in the early ’00s, with Imwalle switching his focus to film (creating the visuals for the band's live shows and video projects).

J23 also included Brian Tyree on drums and Joe Maier's wife Brianne Maier on violin. Joe and Brianne had two young twin daughters. In lieu of flowers, donations for the couple's girls can be made to the Joseph B. Maier Memorial Fund C/O Fifth Third Bank 3715 Ebenezer Road. 45248. Click here to share your condolences.

Check out a CityBeat feature story on J23 here and give a look/listen to a couple of music clips from the band below.

Rolling Stone has the first preview of Cincinnati-bred Funk superhero Bootsy Collins' anticipated forthcoming album, Tha Funk Capital of the World, which features a fascinating array of special guests and is slated for release April 26. The RS Web site is streaming the album's first single, "Don't Take My Funk," a groovy slice of bubbling Funk (you were expecting opera?) that has legendary Soul singer Bobby Womack on vocals and some guitar work from Bootsy's late brother and lifelong collaborator Catfish Collins.

Read More