Country Music Festival Cancelled

In what will be leaving fans with the taste of burnt rubber in their mouths, the Kentucky Speedway announcedcancellation of the Summer Night Jam country music concert. The announced reason was because of "routing and production issues," which could mean the truck hauling the stage equipment broke down, but you would think that if it were that simple another truck could be found giving them enough time before the event (24 plus hours) to get their stuff here.

Speculation in the article, as well on radio reports, indicate that slow ticket sales could have been a factor in the cancellation.

In most instances I remember if a performer can't go on because of health or equipment problems, they come right out and say so directly. Here they are tight liped, which leads to the speculation on why.

Is country music losing appeal either in this region or nationally in general? Or do these acts just not have a big enough fan base?

MidPoint Venue Background

Rick Bird gives a of the background into the venue planning for the Midpoint music festival.

Alchemize Moves to Northside

I am very pleased with the news about Alchemize.

Jailhouse Blues

City Beat's Kevin Osborne sings us the blues about the myths being put forth by the those trying to spin Hamilton County Voters into thinking their plans for a new jail will benefit the masses. The main spinner is Commissioner Phil Heimlich and his plan for a "Poor Tax" where he raises the sales tax, and lowers some of the property taxes, hurts the poor more than any other group. Kevin wisely reports that the tax plan does help the middle class much either, with how the property tax cut is structured.

One of Kevin's myth busting efforts must be repeated:

Fact No. 1: Although some offenders are being released early, including 266 inmates last year alone, all are non-violent offenders, statistics show. No murderer, rapist or even anyone convicted of assault has been let go early due to a lack of space.

If you listened to the cries of some, you would think every criminal picked up is just turned away after they get fingerprinted. A new jail is needed, but why is not what some are trying to spin.

In St. Louis

I am in St. Louis on business this week, so, couple that with my long recovery from Blues Fest, and my lite blogging becomes more explainable.

Downtown St. Louis is nice. There was a Baseball game last night and things were hopping pretty well. The Arch gets a good crowd, but when it is 100 degrees outside, you feel it on your way up to the top of the Arch in the tiny little elevator/Tram cars.

The Sheriff's in Town

Street cleaning is taking place in OTR, both with a broom and with the patrol car.

No Locals at Jazz Fest?

I was working the Cincy Blues Fest this weekend, so I did not at the Jazz Fest, now called the Macy's Music Festival, but were locals missing from the event?

We had a ton of stuff going on along the river, so that may have kept people away from the concert at PBS, but is that was is keeping people away?

The Cincy Blues Fest did great, and was filled with mostly local people, so I don't know why Macy's didn't get the locals in.

I must say that if anyone is upset that 20,000 people came to town and were the majority at the concert, then I think they need to rethink their priorities. The region, and the City, did great. Music Fusion demonstrated that we are a vibrant city with a rich cultural, largely musical, tradition.