MidPoint: Best Out of Town Bands

There are three ways to know what an out of town band is going to be like: 1) is that you have heard of them or seen them perform before, kinda rare, 2) is listening to their music online, and 3) would be based on the recommendation of others.

Here are my picks of the Best of Out of Town Bands at Midpoint:

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit: Thursday 9:30 PM at Grammer's
The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir: Thursday 11:30 PM at Contemporary Arts Center
Gay Witch Abortion: Thursday 12:30 AM at Courtyard Cafe On Main
The Wildbirds: Friday 8:00 PM at Grammer's
Amo Joy: Friday 11:00 PM at Inner Peace Center
Micachu and The Shapes: Saturday 8:00 PM at Grammer's
Chairlift: Saturday 9:30 PM at Grammer's
The Dø: Saturday 11:30 PM at Contemporary Arts Center

UPDATE: Gay Witch Abortion is now off the schedule totally. Not word why, but this surely won't be the only change to the line up, as prior year's show: bands cancel or the van breaks down.

Midpoint Locals - Best of the Best

For those looking for the best of Local Cincinnati Music at this year's Midpoint festival, here are my recommendations:

Straw Boss: Thursday 9:00 PM at Southgate House Lounge
The Seedy Seeds: Thursday 10:30 PM at Contemporary Arts Center
The Tillers: Thursday 11:30 PM at Madonna's Bar & Grill‎
The Lions Rampant: Friday 6:30 PM at Grammer's
Heartless Bastards: Friday 9:30 PM at Grammer's
The Chocolate Horse: Friday 11:00 PM at Havana Martini Club
The Kentucky Struts: Friday 12:00 AM at Arnold’s Bar and Grill
The Sundresses: Friday 12:00 AM at Blue Wisp Jazz Club
Pomegranates: Friday 12:00 AM at Know Theatre Upstairs
Eat Sugar: Saturday 6:30 PM at Grammer's
Jake Speed and the Freddies: Friday 8:30 PM at Washington Platform
You, You’re Awesome: Saturday 10:30 PM at Contemporary Arts Center
Wussy: Saturday 11:00 PM at Know Theatre Upstairs
Buffalo Killers: Saturday 12:00 AM at Southgate House Ballroom

Keeping Council Tweet-Backs To Myself

So, I was good. I wanted to reply to a council member's petty school kid tweet, but I didn't. I would have been mean and been snottier than this council member was to another council member. So I didn't Tweet-back. That would have been the cheap and easy way to respond. I am not keen on shooting fish in a barrel all the time, so I will pass. I will keep my fingernails out of it.

I do think that there is one current council member who should just stop tweeting her childish comments about her political foes, it demeans the profession. Ok, I do know politicians are only above lawyers on the social food chain. Would it matter any more if you knew this councilwoman was a lawyer too? I didn't think so.

If You Are Going to MidPoint

Midpoint is a tremendously fun event. That being said, you might want to plan out your weekend before jumping into it, unless you want to play musical roulette with your ear drums.

For the hardcore music fan, nothing will surpass your own judgment. You need to log onto www.mpmf.com and listen to all of the group’s MySpace pages yourself. Yes, this will take about two days, but nothing is too good for you.

Ok, so if you are not that much of a fanatic about your music and would like some help, well I’ve got some ideas for you. Before I get into some band names, you need to first identify how you want to attend the festival. There are several ways, but lets focus on the most affective methods. When thinking about this I’m going to assume you are getting a three day pass. There are no single day passes this year, so if you plan on going more than one day to more than one venue, you should cough up the $29 bucks for the three day pass. The three main types of fan are the following cleverly named categories:

1. The Floater

2. The Traveler

3. The Focused Planner

The Floater is out to see as much music as possible, and will float around and take chances on bands. The best preparation for a Floater is to plan out your time. Know what bands are playing when, and then catch half a set here, and half a set there. It is nice to have the freedom to hear a few songs of a band you’ve never heard of and if they suck or aren’t of your taste (to put it more pleasantly), then you can hit another band playing near by that you do know and can support. This is great way to see local bands you like and want to support, but weren’t your first option, since you’ll have more chances to see them.

The Traveler has set destinations and a schedule to keep. They have planned to see bands they know or like and worked out a firm plan on who they can see and where. This requires going hour by hour and using something akin to a sextant to map out a route from venue to venue, all while keeping to a time table. If you are smart you will maybe become friends with the Scion Taxis running around town, or maybe hire your own chauffeur if you plan on some trips over to Newport and back. This method is good when you are going to see local bands and only local bands.

The Focused Planner is a person who wants to go one place and stay there. A little boring, but if you are drinking or have a favorite bar, then can work best. This year’s festival is uniquely able to make this type of fan’s experience even better. With special events like the Lite Bright Film Test at the CAC, a fan can spend each night in one place and see a great variety of local and out of town acts, as well as see cool film. The same could be had at various venues where local promotions teams have cooked up cool ways to program certain venues each night. The All Night Party hosts a big night at the Blue Wisp on Friday, and Grammer’s hosts a big tent each night with some of the best known groups, like the Heartless Bastards. Some of these events even work to complement each other, where venues like Fountain Square, end early on Thursday night, allowing you to hit up a second location.

Other concerns: Food! No matter where you are, there are tons of late night food options: Arnold’s will have the full menu available until at least 2:30AM per the owner (Rhonda for those who know her). Other options are Cold Turkey & Shanghai Mama’s on 6^th, Lucy Blue on 12^th and 7^th Streets, and Gilpin’s also on 7^th Street.

OK, so now on to the good stuff, who to see….well, you are going to have to wait for my picks just a little while longer. Yeah, I suckered you in, but tough cookies, sweetheart!

Mynt Martini On The Square

Queen City Survey has the photographic evidence to support the news UrbanCincy reported way back in March. So if this Mynt Martini Twitter page is correct, the club will open this fall.

Vote No on Issue 9

Via UrbanCincy

Oktoberfest Political I Spy

I Spy a Drunk Westwood resident with both a Mallory and Wenstrup sticker on their ass!

That would be worth double points in the game I like to play when at Oktoberfest: What are most bizarre, interesting, or politically significant sights at Oktoberfest Zinzinnati?

This game is totally subjective, has no prizes, and at best if you send in a photo of what you see, I might (keep it clean) post it on the blog.

Mostly this is a way to see what political campaigns are out in force and which ones are absent. Good campaigns treat any festival as an opportunity to meet voters. This is the biggest festival of the campaign season, and the one that actually brings city residents who can vote, as opposed to Riverfest where teenagers make up a high portion of the attendees.

The things I am looking for are simple: candidate stickers, supporters wearing T-shirts, and the candidates themselves. There is no science to this, there is only subjective feeling about the health of a campaign.

Issue campaigns also should be there in strong numbers. I hope to see No on 9 supporters out in force! Those voting for Issue 9, I would think don't go to Oktoberfest or any other event anywhere.

If you happen to get into a discussion about the anti-passenger rail issue, the first question to ask the other person: do they live in the city. If they don't, well, I think you can take it from there.

I'll report in from the festival as best I can. I hope to not break Donald's Blogging While Intoxicated rule set for the blog, but I make no promises!