Orchestral folk group The Ridges return to Cincinnati on Thursday for a free show at MOTR Pub as part of their brief Midwest tour. The band, whom I first caught at MPMF.11, opens for MPMF comrades Paper Thick Walls. The MOTR show is the Ridges’ first Cincinnati show since the release of their Daytrotter session, where you can find some songs from the EP, as well as a few previously unreleased tracks.

I’ve written about the Athens-based band before but now that I’ve seen them a handful of times, I can confidently say The Ridges stands as one of my favorite music discoveries of 2011. The band consists of a rotating ensemble of musicians anchored by Victor Rasgaitis (guitar, vocals), Johnny Barton (percussion, glockenspiel, vocals) and Talor Smith (cello, vocals). Still, the fluidity of the band is one of its many shining facets; every show is different since at any show you may also catch any combination of cello, viola, violin, trumpet, piano, ukelele, mandolin, and double bass. Meanwhile, their debut self-titled EP captures the full range of their sound, from undeniably catchy pop songs like “War Bonds” and “Invented Love” to brooding, baroque-tinged cuts like “The Insomniac’s Song” and “Overboard.” If 2011 is any indication of The Ridges’ potential, expect great things from this band in 2012.

Stream: The Ridges – War Bonds

Catch the promo video for The Ridges’ Winter Tour here.

The Ridges Winter Tour 2012

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2 – Cincinnati, OH – MOTR Pub
Opening for Paper Thick Walls
9PM / Free

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland Tavern
Opening for Hollis Brown
8PM / $8 Tickets
Buy tickets here

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4 – Chicago, IL – Uncommon Ground
With The Island of Misfit Toys
10PM / $5 Cover
Make a listening room reservation: 773-929-3680
*Seating is limited – reservations are highly recommended

-post by Caitlin Behle @cutelin

The album from The War On Drugs from last year was in our opinion, one of the best records released during 2011. It’s a record that is easy to put on the turntable and just let the whole thing play out. Well, the band has kicked the new year off in a big way as well, releasing the tune “Baby Missiles” from Slave Ambient as a single, and performing the song last night on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. With the help of ?uestlove on a second drum kit, and some fans in the background, the guys totally knock their performance out of the park.

And I should mention that this was their television debut? Watch it for yourself below.

The War On Drugs – Baby Missiles

The Heartless Bastards had a great New Years announcement for us all yesterday. Letting the masses know they will be coming to their city with a newfound energy and a new case full of songs. The band are releasing their latest album, Arrow on February 14th. And now we can confirm that they will be hitting their hometown of Cincinnati for a show at the Madison Theatre as well on February 17th. If you are like me, you’ve already spent some time with the first song from the album, “Parted Ways” and now you can watch that song performed live.

The track was captured by the good folks at Do512 in Austin during a live session and gets me even more excited for the new record. Check it below.

And if that wasn’t enough to get you ready, the vinyl fans need to take note of the awesome looking double LP the band are making available for pre-order this week as well. Here is a picture of the Deluxe Pack….

The pictures package will set you back 65$ but if you can live without the lithograph and CD you can get the package for 38$. Snag one or both here.

Plenty to be amped about for our friends Heartless Bastards in 2012!

Just in time for the new year comes the release of a Daytrotter session from a great local band, The Ridges. I just finished listening to the five song session and I have to say it’s some of the best stuff I’ve heard from the band. Of course being in the magical Daytrotter studios can’t hurt.

The songs featured in the session include live versions of “Not a Ghost,” “War Bonds” and “Overboard” from The Ridges’ self-titled debut as well as two previously unreleased tracks called “Dawn of Night” and “Jackson Pollock.”

I should really just let this session speak for itself, so check out the Daytrotter session from The Ridges!

We are big fans of the boys in Frontier Folk Nebraska, and you should be too. They continue to be one of the most consistent rock bands in the area. The guys have something for you for the holidays today too, a free download of a tune that is a part of the “Oh Joy, More Goodies” album. The album also features Cincy artists like Kelly Thomas and The Western, download the whole thing out here.

Here is the FFN track, titled “Jesus Christ.”

Frontier Folk Nebraska – Jesus Christ

Last year Donewaiting and Each Note Secure released A Very Ohio Christmas, Volume One featuring acts from all over Ohio. Phantods, Super Desserts, Brainbow, Adam from Southeast Engine, No No Knots, and many others were involved. Today, we are releasing the album as a free download to spread the holiday cheer.

We hope to do a second volume next year which we want to tie into a Kickstarter vinyl release. More details next year.

Grab it for free and play it all month long.

It’s the holiday season and while we all think about what gifts might be waiting for us at the end of the month, there is a gift that showed up in our inboxes and Twitter feeds this morning that should excite all fans of The Afghan Whigs.

The legendary Cincinnati rock band are reuniting for their first live shows in 13 years in 2012 and the masses are acting like a kid on Christmas morning. On the weekend of the 25th-27th May 2012 at Alexandra Palace, London, All Tomorrow’s Parties present the second UK I’ll Be Your Mirror event. Frontman Greg Dulli will also co-curate ATP’s I’ll Be Your Mirror festival in Asbury Park, New Jersey, taking place September 21-23. The Afghan Whigs will headline September 22.

Tickets are on sale now via ATPFestival.com.

In the strange world of Ohio rock though, we see that the band the Whigs are replacing just happens to be Guided By Voices. This sidenote raised the eyebrows of many, so many that the bands PR team jumped in to say that GBV are “not split up”, here is that release.

Guided by Voices have not split up and continue to work on new material together. In addition to the album release of Let’s Go Eat the Factory for January, the band are at work on another album, Class Clown Spots A UFO. Robert Pollard will also be releasing a solo record in March called Mouseman Cloud.

Unfortunately Guided By Voices are canceling their appearances at Primavera and ATP/I’ll Be Your Mirror, due to personal reasons. The band apologizes for any inconvenience and disappointment, and thanks Primavera, ATP and the fans for their longterm support.

So what seemed initially like some bittersweet news is actually just great news. And of course, it fulfills the wishes of our friends from Bicentennial Bear, who did a song for the Very Ohio Christmas album we released last year with the folks at Donewaiting.com. Here is that song, available now as a free download.

Bicentennial Bear – All I Want For Christmas (is an Afghan Whigs reunion)

So, will you be attending either of the shows next year?

Last week I noticed an interesting tweet from our friend Margaret Darling of The Seedy Seeds regarding the recent news that The Southgate House was closing its doors. I could tell she had more on her mind than 140 characters would hold and invited her to put her thoughts down for more to see through ENS. She was gracious enough to do just that, read below.

I think discussion is always a healthy thing, and especially in the wake of such divisive news, I’m excited the subject of Southgate House’s present situation has prompted so many reports, reminiscences, and debates. The story, which is still developing, came out without cushioning. I’ve been following along; I’ve read a number of blog posts and news articles, and I’ve chatted with folks when I’ve been out and about. And perhaps it’s because of the stress from the shock of the announcement—or maybe for other reasons entirely—but I think there are some angles worth considering that so far are absent from the landscape of dialogue. I’d like to weigh in.

Before I launch into the points I’m so eager to make, the below paragraph is something of a preamble underlining why you should bother with anything that I express in the first place:
I’m not from Cincinnati, and none of my family grew up here either. I’m a transplant, but I have a very intimate relationship with the Southgate House. I’ve attended shows as a member of the audience. I’ve performed on each of the stages in various musical projects. I’ve served drinks from behind every bar. I’ve come in as a patron to enjoy its character as well as selections from its bourbon list. I’ve played probably 50 games of scrabble against Ross Raleigh over many an afternoon at the Lounge bar while practically playing out “Tennessee Waltz” by Les Paul & Mary Ford on the jukebox. I’ve personally witnessed some of the creepy activity that has led many to swear up and down that the place is haunted. I feel insanely fortunate to count many of its staff among my friends. I’ve had great nights there and I’ve had some pretty tough ones too. Like so many of you, this place—the business, the building, the people, the music—has been a big part of my life and my experiences; it means a lot to me in such a personal way on numerous levels. And while, like many Cincinnatians, I am a fiercely loyal person, I believe the perspective I’m presenting here is not shaped by my devotion. I have laid out my ties to Southgate House to prove I have reason to know what I know, but still I aim to be objective.

In retrospect, I think much of the initial reaction that poured from our community at large in response to the announcement last Monday—the anxiety, urgency, and frustration—was exacerbated by confusion from conflicting details and from a lack of information clearly missing in reported accounts. To be fair, and especially given how important Southgate House is to so many people, I think consistency in message coming from the SGH camp from the onset could have made the news easier to chew on. But things came out as they did in the order in which they did, and the overwhelming response seemed to be one of mourning—of deep sadness. I read things like “This can’t be!” and “What a loss for Cincinnati.” I read statements like “Some of the best shows I’ve ever seen were at Southgate House; there will never be another place like it.”

And we wondered, “Why?” Is it an economical issue? Is it a violation of building code? We now know things came to a head over a dispute between property owners. And to make matters worse, we know the discord occurred betwixt siblings. Family feuds are nasty business; the concept casts such an unpleasant spot on the Southgate saga. Because we aren’t always privy to what happens behind the scenes, we must acknowledge before drawing conclusions that we may be missing crucial information.

I don’t pretend to know a thing besides what’s been published this week, but what I do know is that one of the parties involved, Ross Raleigh, is fundamental to Southgate House being what it is today. It is undeniable how every staff member at SGH has shaped what it has become—among them, a few individuals have had profound effect on SGH’s music model and current shape—but first it was Ross who bought the building and who saw potential and who turned it into a music venue. Ross is a very modest and very humble person, and he would never think to try and make a big deal out of himself even for the sake of some positive PR in the midst of this debacle. The real shame of this is he defines in character exactly why people matter more in the case of what constitutes the Southgate House than its physical location.

The Raleigh clan (Ross plus daughter Morrella (SGH Manager) plus son Kevin) has, despite ups and downs, endeavored to keep the doors open, and still do. Over the years, they have assembled a very smart staff around them who love SGH so much, they put up with some of the most unsavory things one comes across in bar business in order to provide some of the best venue experiences a patron can have night after night. The SGH staff actively work hard to maintain this anchor that is absolutely crucial to the health of our scene.
It hasn’t only been about providing opportunities for local bands, though Southgate House has consistently been one of the most fervent supporters of local music we have; SGH has enriched our local culture by putting national acts in front of us and by striving to operate always as a quality destination. Now is the time they need us, the Cincinnati community—the musicians and the fans—to be there for them and give them our support.

No matter what the politics of the move, leaving a gem like the actual Southgate House building can not possibly be an easy decision. It is tough to lose; ours is not a culture that digests death easily. But this is not the end of the Southgate House. There’s certainly a valid argument to be made regarding the vacation of Richard Southgate’s home forcing a finish to it’s existing legacy, and to that I present the following idea: Southgate House is an amalgamation of a number of elements. It is the brand and the business model, the people who run it and those employed by them, the musicians who come through, the patrons who attend its events and the community that supports it. After all these things it is a building. The very same people who have been working for thirty years to build something of which we are all a part, are taking everything except the physical structure and continuing on in a new location. Without thinking, because it’s been there, we have trusted SGH & Co.’s direction for years. We should trust that these same people will now, with every bit of their energy and all of their resources, do whatever it takes to make the new location as amazing if not even more so that its present home.

And how about some what ifs? Like, what if the new location is actually better for seeing live music? What if structurally it presents fewer problems (SGH is presently patching a leak in the roof)? What if the sound is even better? We haven’t seen it yet, but what if the space is just as cool? It’s true it will not be the same as before—but really, should it be? Change is something we are confronted with in life, sometimes when we really could use consistency instead. What if, especially because it is happening whether we like it or not, we right now conceive of this change as full of possibility? I think we are evolved enough that we can hold something to be forever sacred as it was even while we embrace a new chapter. Furthermore, isn’t it exciting that we get to be a part of the next phase from the very beginning?

It is abundantly clear in reviewing even an iota of the personal responses to “the news”, that everyone has a Southgate story. The thing that is perhaps most beautiful is that we, as this community, can all take ownership of Southgate House. This is our beloved venue. It is we—we, who spent our nights there, who saw great music there, who met our husbands and wives there, who did stupid shots there, who always cared about it even when we moved out of town—who have, interwoven with all the other pieces that make the Southgate House a concept as much as a business and a location, built SGH into something we ache to lose. This is why the threat of Southgate House closing is such a sting.

I encourage everyone who has been touched by this place to continue to think fondly of it. I don’t believe what we each relate to that is deeply personal and what we all share in our collective community is at risk by the venue closing or changing. Not everything is permanent, and it is because of this that our past experiences at Southgate House can be more valuable as memories than projected upon our yet unvisited futures.

One piece I read highlighted input from scene juggernauts Chris Schadler and Dan McCabe, each of whom, having contributed significantly both to the history of Southgate House and to the Cincinnati music scene in general, can offer perspective we should consider. The article includes thoughts from McCabe in which he postulates how national acts might choose to play other cities instead of Cincinnati without SGH in operation. This is a very important notion and I’m glad that he was quoted. Sometimes I worry that even when a community understands to some degree how important a business can be when removed from cultural significance (i.e. in an economical sense), it doesn’t necessarily think of or fully realize what the repercussions of the absence of that business could be. The truth is that Southgate House won’t be gone for long. I’ve spoken with Morrella, Billy and Mike; the SGH office is already hard at work prepping the new location. They have every intention of relaunching as soon as possible, so the very bleak consequences of this venue closing for a long period of time—or for good—are thankfully not going to impact us.

I hope the overall public tone shifts soon to something that more closely resembles anticipation and excitement than brokenheartedness and abandonment. The visionaries behind my favorite venue in the world are promising big things, and I believe them.

-Margaret Darling (@m_darling)

Last week we helped get the word out that Ryan Adams was returning to Cincinnati for a show at the Taft Theatre. Adams recently announced a slew of tour dates, several of which are here in the midwest, in support of his excellent album Ashes & Fire. We love the record and recommend you grabbing it on vinyl at your local independent record store of choice, as it was recorded entirely with analog devices.

Well, today we have the privilege of putting up some tickets to the show, which takes place on January 28th.

To qualify for the tickets, I’m asking that you put your favorite Ryan Adams lyrics, from any album, in the comments here on ENS. I’ll choose one of your favorites and that person will win a pair of tickets to the show.

Are you familiar with the School Of Rock? No, I don’t mean that Jack Black movie, although it’s based on something similar. I mean the Paul Green School Of Rock that was started back in 2000. The school has grown by leaps and bounds since then, boasting 72 schools in 26 states and have even opened schools in Mexico. And they plan to grow to over 300 schools in the coming years.

One of those areas of expansion is fertile soil of the Cincinnati area, there several schools are being planned, starting with one in Mason. Tim Garry, whose sons are School Of Rock alumni from his years on the east coast, (here is video of his kids playing Hendrix) has returned to Cincinnati and is heading up the project. I met Tim recently and he told me he plans to lease a 5,000 sq ft building on Reading Road that will allow him to house not only the school but also a performance venue that will be able to accommodate an audience of up to 125. Tim hopes to open the first school in early 2012, possibly as soon as March. He also believes the greater Cincinnati area has the potential for 4-6 schools: 1 north (Mason), 1-2 on the east side, 1-2 in northern Kentucky, and 1-2 on the west side. Tim’s goal is to build out to at least 4 schools over the next three years.

So why School Of Rock? Well, I’ll let them give you a brief explanation of what they believe in.

We believe the best way to learn music is to play music. We take students from the lesson room to the stage, developing both their confidence and musicianship with programs designed for all skill levels.

School of Rock teaches guitar, bass, vocals, keyboards, drums and combines weekly private music lessons and group band rehearsals to prepare students to take the stage in front of live audiences in an authentic concert setting.

Here is a great explanation through video…

I feel like this is a great opportunity for the city of Cincinnati to open their arms to an established school of music. I for one would love for my kids to be involved as much as possible and I hope others feel the same way. Lets start by welcoming the School Of Rock to town.