Guess what month it is?

And guess what day it is?

Yep, it’s Ween Wednesday at The Columbia (4311 Eastern Ave.) and they’ll be Rocktobering the Vote!

Also playing this evening: Franz Ferdinand at Bogart’s The Madison Theater. (The bathroom struggle is real at Bogart’s.)

Thursday shows:

• Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel at Ludlow Garage (list member Dave Green will be there)
• Hayes Carll & his band at Southgate

On Friday:

• Tyler Childers and Hayes Carll (hmm, didn’t he just play?) at Riverbend (list member Dave “Double Dip” Green will be there)
• Scotty Bratcher Band featuring Noah Wotherspoon at the Liberty Theater in L-burg, IN
• Madison Theater has “Women in Blues from Beale Street”
• The Orchestra (starring ELO and ELO Part II members) plays the Taft
• Beth Stelling does a comedy set at the Woodward

Saturday gigs:

• Sungaze plays the Liberty Theater
• WAIF radio celebrates 50 years at Five Points Alley in Walnut Hills (6-10 p.m.), with free music from WAIF DJs including the Wussy Duo, Nick Maurer, and more.
• Judas Priest and Alice Cooper play Riverbend

On Sunday:

• Here Come The Mummies come to Bogart’s The Madison Theater (they used all the Bogart’s toilet paper for their stage outfits)
• Ludlow Garage features “the Music of ABBA” (not scheduled to appear – not even in hologram form: Agnetha, Benny, Bjorn, and Anni-Frid)
• Newport (the NKY city, not the cig brand) features Mammoth Music & Arts Festival, with headliners Fishbone and Cowboy Mouth.

The Psychedelic Furs play Ovation on Tuesday, with Gary Numan as the opener.

Next Wednesday, Rocktober 8th, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram plays the blues at Taft, and the headliner-less River Roots Festival kicks off and runs through Rocktober 12. Full music lineup is here.

On Friday, Rocktober 10th:

• Johnnyswim is at Bogart’s The Madison Theater (If Johnnyswim at Bogart’s, Johnnygetdysentery)
• Maria etc. plays the Liberty Theater, with Evan McMillian

Shows on Saturday, Rocktober 11th:

• Southern Culture on the Skids at Southgate
• Noah Smith does a live recording of his Crooner Circus at the Liberty Theater
• Papadosio plays the old Annie’s
• T-Pain is at Ovation
• Madison Live has Walk on Homeboys (a Pantera tribute)

On Sunday, Rocktober 12, Hiss Golden Messenger does a solo show at Southgate, with Rett Madison. That same evening, Foghat plays the Ludlow Garage. I hope they get the name right on the marquee:

A.J. Croce is at the Taft on Monday, 10/13.

Neko Case plays the Taft on Tuesday, 10/14. I still haven’t forgiven her for her Taft meltdown several years ago.

Nellie McKay is in Southgate’s Revival Room on Wednesday, 10/15 and Sungaze, Glimmer, and Dravin & the Ravens are at Northside Tavern.

Shows on Thursday, 10/16:

• Donna the Buffalo (also the nickname of my prom date) plays Memorial Hall
• Rock this Town Orchestra with Sweet Megg in Southgate’s main room
• Noah Smith’s Crooner Circus plays Southgate’s Revival Room

We love it live!

It was well worth the trip to Detroit to see The Tubs at Third Man Records. They are so good – and nice dudes too!

I wore my Merge Records shirt… and The Tubs drummer informed me that they had just signed with Merge!

Opener Ryan Allen was cool too.

I also saw All-American Rejects at the Kroger Wellness Festival last week. (That’s a sentence I never imagined typing.) I’m not very familiar with their catalog, but my son wanted to go and I have to pretend to be a good dad every once in a while.

And now, the sad part (Parts I and II)

We recently lost two great dudes who contributed a ton to the Cincy music scene for decades: Jimmy D and Dave Cunningham.

It’s hard to believe Randy Cheek, Jimmy D, and John Erhardt (above, L to R) are no longer here.

The full Enquirer article is here.

Turning sadness into a lasting legacy

A heartfelt note from list member Michael “Rico” Carrico:

I lost my brother to cancer six years ago, and before he passed, I promised him that I would do anything that I could to help fight the terrible disease that took him from us too early.  One of the initiatives that our family has taken up is to help fundraise for the National Collegiate Cancer Foundation, which provides scholarships to young adults who have been diagnosed with cancer.  

Our primary fundraiser is a memorial golf outing, which will be held this year at California Golf Course on Saturday, October 4, 2025 at noon. In the first four years of our outing, we have raised funds to award 95 of these scholarships, and we hope to add on a bunch more this year with the help of friends like you.  Whether that is getting a team together to play in the scramble, providing sponsorship, or donating items for auction, any and all support is welcome and appreciated.

You can donate here. Thanks!

Fallon loves Freekbass

File this one in the “Things I never thought would happen” folder. A woman in West Chester read my Freekbass profile in the July issue of Cincinnati Magazine (I hope you did too!) and sent in the main photo to The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon for his “Lookalikes” segment. Hijinks ensued.

(Irate) letters to the editor

List member Dan “Hey, at least the Reds made the playoffs” Lewis has a bone to pick with my pathetic prose… and my paltry props for his prowess in identifying talent:

I think Dan “Get off my lawn” Lewis has been doing too much day-drinking since he hung up his sales outfit.

But it’s true, Dan was waaay ahead of the curve on Dwight and The Mavericks. However, his track record isn’t exactly unblemished:

It’s also true that I could have pushed that Dwight show harder. Mea culpa X dos. BTW, Los Lobos wound up opening the show. The Mavericks had to cancel due to Raul Malo’s cancer battle.

We’d like to dedicate this next number to cancer:

Album Cover(s) of the Week(s)

He’ll probably get a restraining order instead.

Whoever named this band and album needs some remedial math and English classes.