Cereal Killers

Roll-vember

Concert Listings, Music

Let’s get rolling with the concert rundown…

First, the Melvin Seals & the Jerry Garcia Band show that was supposed to happen tonight at Ludlow Garage has been postponed. But the Del McCoury Band gig at Memorial Hall is still a go, and the Ben Levin Trio plays Dead Low Brewing with special guest Noah Wotherspoon.

It’s gigs galore on Saturday:

  • The Steeldrivers play the old Annie’s
  • Silversun Pickups are at Ovation in Newport
  • Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening rock and rolls into the Icon (see what we did there?)
  • The Yugos play Bircus Brewing in Ludlow
  • Last but certainly not least, Styx will be rockin’ the Paradise Hard Rock Casino. No Dennis DeYoung, but Tommy Shaw, James Young and the living Panozzo brother (Chuck).

Oh, and Rob Fetters kicks off another round of “Fetters is Cheap” – streaming live shows from his home. He promises “crowd faves plus more debuts of rarities.” You can tune in via Rob’s website.

Early on Sunday, Ben Levin & Friends will again be playing the Hard Rock Casino from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. Davy Knowles and the Noah Wotherspoon Band play the Southgate House, and there’s a Play It Forward benefit concert at the Madison Theater, with my old radio boss Gary Burbank listed as a “speaker”… makes sense, as he was a Pioneer in radio (see what we did there?).

Tuesday is an evening for music legends. Bob Dylan plays the Aronoff, and John Hiatt & the Jerry Douglas Band will be at Memorial Hall.

If he were really “me” he’d still go by Robert Zimmerman

That same evening, someone named TobyMac has a sold out show at Taft. I thought TobyMac was a menu item at Keystone Bar & Grill, but apparently he’s an “American Christian hip hop rapper and singer.”

TobyMac… no, wait…

On Wednesday, I’ll be at MOTR Pub, along with list members Jacqui and Dave Killen (remember their Parlor & Patio house shows? I miss them…). Former Parlor & Patio performer (say that three times fast) Brett Newski and his full band (“The No Tomorrow”… they’re from Milwaukee, you do the math) will be playing at 9 p.m., followed by Adam Flaig (of Mad Anthony). Brett’s a very entertaining dude, and you can’t beat the MOTR ticket price. Join us, won’t you?

Also on Wednesday, The Lone Bellow plays Taft, and the Hooten Hallers are at Southgate.

Thursday, GWAR plays Bogart’s and Dennis Quaid plays Ludlow Garage. Yes, that Dennis Quaid, the actor. Guess he got tired of punching the clock with his fellow actors on movie sets.

Bogart’s and Ludlow Garage are pretty close to each other – fingers crossed that GWAR sits in with Dennis for his encore. Or vice versa… although that might not end well for DQ. Also on Thursday, Neal Francis plays Taft. I don’t know much about Neal’s music, but I know his promo photo makes him a dead ringer for Nigel Tufnel:

  • Goes on by 10
  • Goes up to 11

Next Friday, November 12th, Gary Clark Jr. plays the Icon, The Wild Feathers play Madison Theater, and Spyro Gyra plays Ludlow Garage. When I was younger, I used to love Spyro Gyra…

Spyro Gyra… no, wait…

Gig Pics

What a fabulous show by the Cereal Killers at MadTree last Friday — including a special guest appearance by our neighbor Amy Hueneman doing vocals on a Pretenders song! Great crowd too, including list members Dave Tellmann, Whit & Barb Gardner, Bruce Roy, Todd Butler, and Dan Bockrath (who brought several of his high school buddies – do NOT attempt to keep pace with them on drinking).

On Sunday morning, I joined Dave & Mindy Tellmann at the Hard Rock Casino for the Ben Levin brunch show with Chicago blues legend Bob Stroger (I misspelled his name last week – sorry Bob!). Bob is 90 years young… amazing voice and great stage presence. Noah Wotherspoon was on guitar too!

Dave, Mindy and I were joined by Dave’s son Joe (of This Pine Box), Joe’s friend Liam and none other than one of Joe’s non-traditional CCM classmates: John Curley of the Afghan Whigs! When you go to live shows, good things happen.

Two feet from stardom. I had the French toast… John had an Impossible Burger.

Dave and I interviewed John Curley on our 97X podcast in April of 2020. Just sayin’.

Words of wisdom

And in case you missed it (I sure did), apparently the Mountain Goats song “No Children” went viral on TikTok. (Read more here.) Lead singer John Darnielle has the right perspective on it:

But when people do find it, it affirms for those of us who make indie music that when the broader public is exposed to it, there’s more people who would like it if they get a chance to hear it. The consolidation of radio and the diffuse nature of the media landscape means that there’s lots of good stuff that people don’t generally hear unless it gets a viral moment…

…Our childish dreams of how these things work have value. So when something like this happens in my life, well, that’s a dream come true. We did not tell people, “Check out ‘No Children,’ you’re gonna love it.” No. they took it and they ran with it, and it’s beautiful. If there was more stuff like that in the world, the world’s a better place. Not just for me, but for whoever, because there’s a million fun songs out there for people to find that people do not need to be told by the influencer factory which one to listen to.

John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats in this Variety interview

Watch this

The War on Drugs live in a studio… amazing.

You can see all three songs that The War on Drugs performed on CBS Saturday Morning via the embedded videos in this article.

Random Album Cover of the Week

I don’t need a gym membership, I just need a turntable. Upper arms, waistline and hips don’t lie.

Have a great week!

Episode 35: Howard Cohen, Cereal Killer

97X, Music, podcast

A self-described “97X listener/scenester/scruffy little punky New Wave dude,” Howard started playing in bands as a teenager and has never stopped rocking. His current band, Cereal Killers, played their first gig at Sudsy Malone’s on Short Vine in 1989, and their current set list consists predominantly of songs that graced the 97X airwaves back in the day: punk, New Wave, garage rock… We chat with Howard about dropping The Village People for Generation X, college parties and car wrecks (they go together), what 97Xposure meant to his bands, the Modern Rock 500, and his side hustle as a jingle singer/voiceover artist.

Cereal Killers at their first gig, December 15th, 1989 at Sudsy Malone’s.

Cereal Killers at their most recent gig, at MadTree Brewing in Oakley. [Photos from this gallery by Joe Simon for the Cincinnati Enquirer]

Howard’s on the right in the photo above

If this jingle has ever gotten stuck in your head, blame Howard (and Rob Fetters)

Howard’s day job is Field Sales Rep for Great Lakes Brewing Company, Ohio’s oldest and largest craft brewery. (He’s on furlough at present.) In 2018, Great Lakes announced an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), making every employee a shareholder.

Howard is an avid, voracious reader and has volunteered for several Books by the Banks events. (Read more in this Soapbox Cincinnati feature from 2011). In this short bonus clip, he suggests a couple of recent books that may be of interest to 97X fans.

For this episode of the podcast, as well as all recordings done since March, Dave and Damian have been practicing safe social distancing. Here’s Dave at his home set-up:

And here’s Damian’s janky set-up in the Party Dungeon.

  • Note the books (and cat litter bucket) used for the mic stand.

This Week in Live Music: February 17-23

Concert Listings, Music, podcast

Before I tell you what’s cooking this coming week, I have to give a huge shout-out to all the list members who made the killer Cereal Killers gig at MadTree on Saturday afternoon: Dan, Joyce, Amy, Tim, Michelle, Mindy, Lisa, Phil… and at least three Daves!

He’s at MadTree!

In classic Cincinnati fashion, where three degrees of separation would set a new Tri-State record, my college buddy Tim Condron (who went to high school with Cereal Killer’s guitarist Matt Hueneman) was there with his wife, who, unbeknownst to us prior to the gig, works with the wife of my podcast partner Dave. What are the chances?

OK, better stop reminiscing before I turn into a Little River Band tribute band (name: Tiny Creek Ensemble). Let’s get to this week’s rather sparse lineup of gigs.

Tom Keifer, that fella from Cinderella (the hair band, not the Disney movie), plays Bogart’s on Tuesday.

Wednesday, Memorial Hall hosts the Americana duo Drew & Ellie Holcomb.

On Thursday, Brooklyn band Stuyedeyed plays MOTR with Oregon Space Trail and In The Pines. The Whiskey Wolves of the West play Southgate. American Authors and Magic Giant are at Bogart’s, and Ben Levin plays Smoke Justis.

There are a few gigs of note on Friday:

  • Twiddle plays Madison Theater
  • Motel Radio hits Southgate, in the Revival Room, with Calumet and Juno Dunes also on the bill.
  • All-American Rejects play Bogart’s
  • 20th Century Theater in Oakley hosts An Evening with Suzy Bogguss
  • “Steady Rollin'” Bob Margolin plays the first of back-to-back fundraisers for the Pinetop Perkins Foundation. He’ll be playing the Phone Booth Lounge (sounds cozy) in Kettering with Noah Wotherspoon, Lisa Biales, James Soiberg (longtime guitarist for Luther Allison) and Joe Tellmann (longtime son of podcast co-host Dave).
  • The Box Tops play Ludlow Garage. The current incarnation features original members Gary Talley and Bill Cunningham (not the bombastic talk radio host). R.I.P. Danny Smythe and the inimitable Alex Chilton.

Bob Margolin is back at it on Saturday (he comes by his “Steady Rollin'” moniker honestly). He’s hosting the 6th Annual Dayton Blues Society Youth Showcase. 22 youngsters from 10 states will be showcasing their blues chops, including local whippersnappers Erin Coburn, Ben Levin and Joe Tellmann, all of whom have learned from blues masters via the Pinetop Perkins Foundation’s annual summer camps in Clarksdale, MS. Great blues for a good cause.

Also on Saturday, local jam band Spookfloaters will be at Fretboard, playing a full set of Jerry Garcia Band tunes and another set of old favorites.

If that’s not trippy enough for you, Memorial Hall has the Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular that same evening.

And if that isn’t trippy enough for you, consider this: 80s pop starlet Tiffany is still a viable commodity… she’s hosting an “Ultimate 80s Party” at Kenwood Mall Bogart’s.

On Sunday, Kulick plays Southgate’s Revival Room.

Hot Ticket Alerts

Andrew Bird, Calexico and Iron & Wine will be at PNC Pavilion on Saturday, June 20th. Neko Case plays Memorial Hall on Sunday, June 28th. (Here’s hoping that she’s in a better mood than she was when she played Taft a few years back. THE most uncomfortable/disappointing fan experience I’ve ever had.) Dead & Co. waft into Riverbend on Monday, July 20th. And summer festival season is just around the corner. Tickets are on sale now for Bellwether in Waynesville:

And Forecastle in Louisville:

I find both festivals’ lineups a bit underwhelming, but maybe I’m just getting old.

The 1975? Is Patty Hearst in that band?

Speaking of which, Bunbury has a great lineup if you are a tween:

“Back in my day, a Marshmello went on a s’more!

Recommended Reading

This Esquire piece about Huey Lewis’ battle with hearing issues is an interesting read. Loved this excerpt:

Huey’s more of a risk-taker than his spot in the mainstream would suggest. He convinced his label to pay for an unknown Stevie Ray Vaughan to open for the Sports tour. (The fans weren’t ready for it: “He’d be burning it down, and the crowd would go, ‘Huuuey, Huuuey.’ It was the weirdest feeling, hating your audience.”)

Shameless Self-promotion

Shout-out to the Cereal Killers for the nice plug on their Facebook page about this website and the 97X podcast:

I’m blushing!

Since the Cereal Killers mentioned it, there IS a brand-new, piping-hot episode of the podcast available. Bryan Jay Miller (intern, sales, promotions, digital, woxy.com GM) is our guest. Tune in to find our where all the albums, posters and other 97X/woxy.com paraphernalia might be buried.

Album Cover of the Week

An album so white bread that it should come in a Wonder wrapper.

Videos

Have a great week!

This week in Live Music: August 5-11

Concert Listings, Music

Before we get into this week’s live tuneage, let’s dwell for a moment on last week’s live shows. Big shout out to the list members (and friends of list members) who came to the Eric Bachmann house show at my place: Jacqui, Ken, Jeff, Bob, Dan and Martha, Rico, and Rico’s buddies Cody and Louie. What a great gig! And getting a chance to chat with Eric afterward was just as cool… I’m going to begrudgingly forgive Neko Case for her antics last time she played Taft, as Eric (who was in her touring band) gave us the backstory.

Eric Bachmann at Damian’s house

The Cereal Killers performed a stellar (albeit too brief) set in Mt. Adams on Friday. We need to get them a recurring gig – any suggestions for a venue that might be amenable to hosting a killer band that plays great tunes from the late 70s/early 80s indie/college rock pantheon?

Cereal Killers in Mt. Adams… that’s not Eric Bachmann on guitar, it’s his doppelganger Matt Hueneman.

And finally, a shout out to list member Dan “Come to the Trevor Bauer Power Hour” Lewis for checking out the Ben Levin Trio at the Overlook Kitchen + Bar at the Summit Hotel in Madisonville. That hotel feels out of place next to a UDF, but their restaurant/bar patio is a very cool spot to hang out… especially when Ben Levin is playing.

OK, on with the show(s)… Tonight, Max Frost is playing the 20th Century Theater, with Swells as the opener.

On Tuesday, The Regrettes are at Madison Live, Joe Bonamassa is playing Fraze, Knotty G’s are at Stanley’s, the Local Music Showcase at Sawyer Point features Jordan Wilson Coalition and Brother Smith (6:30-10 p.m.) and Tesla (the band, not the car… actually maybe both) is at Rose Music Center.

Jake Speed & the Freddies are this week’s featured band in the Wednesdays in the Woods series at Burnet Woods. The Royal Hounds are playing Southgate’s Revival Room with NP Presley and The Ghost of Jesse Garon.

On Thursday, JJ Grey & Mofro are playing PNC Pavilion with Jonny Lang and Marc Brussard. List members Whit and Barb Gardner will be at that show. Joyce Manor is playing Woodward that evening, with Saves the Day and awakebutstillinbed, the band named after my teenage kids. Jamestown Revival plays Top Cats, and Madison Theater will host the Squirrel Nut Zippers.

This just in: list member/junior correspondent Madeleine Meeks informs our news desk that The Dip will be playing a free show at RiversEdge in Hamilton! Ohio on Thursday evening, and they’ll be playing an intimate gig at Plaid Room Records on Friday night. They are, per Madeleine, “seven young, gorgeous men from Seattle playing jazzy, old timey, classy, sexy tunes”… that blurb sounds a lot better coming from her than from me.

The summer is flying by, and it’s Bellwether Weekend… and Railbird weekend. Bellwether kicks off Friday in Waynesville at the Renaissance Festival grounds, home of giant turkey legs and jousting… and perhaps jousting with giant turkey legs.

The Bellwether schedule is below, headliners include Real Estate and Cake on Friday, and Guided By Voices, Pinback and Beach House on Saturday. I’ll be in attendance both days.

Railbird is Saturday and Sunday at Keeneland in Lexington, KY. Here’s the list of performers:

There are a slew of local shows on Friday as well:

  • JJ Grey/Jonny Lang/Marc Broussard play Rose Music Center
  • Willow Tree Carolers are at Camp Springs Tavern
  • Vesperteen headlines the free show at Fountain Square
  • ghost man on second is playing Lucius Q
  • Wyatt Edmondson is at Stanley’s with Electric Son
  • The Darling Suns, Heavy Hinges and Darity are playing Northside Tavern
  • Ben Levin Trio plays BrewRiver

And there are plenty of gigs on Saturday too:

  • Chuck Cleaver, Lisa Walker and Mark Messerly of Wussy are at MOTR, playing solo stuff as well as collaborating on some Wussy tunes.
  • Santana plays Riverbend with the Doobie Brothers. List members Whit and Barb will be at that gig too… they are cuckoo for concerts this week.
  • Black Flag is playing Riverfront Live. Speaking of Black Flag, this is a cool mini-doc about their artwork.
  • Common is at Madison Theater
  • The Newbees have a 15th anniversary show at Southgate
  • Megan Wren is at Southgate too, in the Revival Room
  • 500 Miles to Memphis headlines the Fountain Square freebie
  • John Butler Trio is at Rose Music Center
  • The Gotobeds (named after me talking to my teenage kids) are playing Northside Yacht Club, with Vacation and Cold Stereo
  • Flying Underground and Maurice Mattei & the Tempers are at Urban Artifact
  • The Generics will be at Fretboard Brewing in Blue Ash.
I’m just phoning it in now.

Sunday is a bit quieter, at least from a volume (of shows) standpoint. Death Valley Girls and Moonwalks are at MOTR, and JP Harris & the Tough Choices are playing Southgate, with Jeremy Pinnell opening the show.

A few other notes: Shake It Records is selling the first deck of Cincinnnati Music Legends trading cards, a very cool idea. Read more in CityBeat.

Wham!

I’m really digging the new album from Bleached called Don’t You Think You’ve Had Enough (which is what my kids say to me when I’m reaching for my third slice of cake).

And the latest episode of the 97X podcast features Barb Abney talking about her 25+ year career playing modern rock (97X, the woxy.com, then The Current in Minneapolis, and now KFAI.) All episodes of the “Rumblings from the Big Bush” podcast are now available on Spotify, too.

Have a wonderful week!

This week (and next week) in Live Music

Concert Listings

Special Double Issue: June 24-July 7

That’s right kids, this go-round you get a “special double issue” because I care so much that I want to give you double the usual content, as a no-cost bonus to you. It’s like two, two, two mints in one!

(This double issue has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I’ll be on vacation next week. I would never, ever, ever prioritize relaxing/drinking on the beach over delivering piping-hot TWILM content.) OK, on with the show(s)!

Hmm, there’s not much live music action in this neck of the woods on Monday or Tuesday… guess this is more like a “special one-and-a-half issue.” But hey, Delta Rae will be at the 20th Century in Oakley on Wednesday.

Thursday, Jimmie Vaughan will be at Memorial Hall, with a full band.

Jimmie is perhaps best known for being a member of the Fabulous Thunderbirds and Stevie Ray Vaughan’s older brother/mentor/inspiration, but I always liked this quote about him from his little bro:

“I play probably 80 percent of what I can play.  Jimmie plays one percent of what he knows.  He can play anything.”

— Stevie Ray Vaughan

It should be a Fabulous show (see what I did there?). At last check, only a handful of single seats remained for this gig.

Also on Thursday, John R. Miller and the Engine Lights are at Southgate, Mykal Rose featuring Sly and Robbie will be at the old Annie’s, and Ben Levin Trio is playing Latitudes in Anderson Township, and pimping Ben’s new CD.

Hey, he looks like the kid who lives down the street from me. Wait, he IS the kid who lives down the street from me!

Guided By Voices are playing a sold-out show at the Woodward Theater on Friday evening. Bob Pollard and the boys always put on an entertaining show. Also, in the time it took you to read that last sentence, they released three new albums.

Some other shows of note on Friday:

  • NRBQ is at Southgate
  • Ricky Nye and Chris Douglas are at Wiedemann Brewery & Taproom
  • The Stolen Faces play Stanley’s
  • Ben Levin & Noah Wotherspoon are playing a Cincy Blues Fest fundraiser at Christian Moerlein Taproom
  • The Adjust Your Eyes (AYE) festival kicks off at various Northside venues, and runs through Saturday
  • Ghost Man on Second plays Northside Tavern

Saturday, the fabulous local band Cereal Killers will be playing Mt. Adams Pavilion. I’d totally be there if I weren’t on vacation. Please go in my stead. Also on Saturday:

  • Car Seat Headrest is at Bogart’s
  • Dark Star Orchestra plays Annie’s (OK, Riverfront Live)
  • Stanley’s has the 9th annual Reggae Fest, featuring the Cliftones, Elementree, the Ark Band and more
  • Ray Vietti of the Harmed Brothers plays Camp Springs Tavern. I saw Ray open up for Caroline Spence about a month ago, great stuff.
  • Ben Levin Duo is at Streetside Brewery
  • Styx is playing a sold-out gig at the Rose Music Center. Huber Heights loves their Mr. Roboto almost as much as they love brick homes.

All of those shows are really just appetizers, the main course is a Sunday show: Kidz Bop World Tour at PNC Pavilion!

Bela Fleck and the Flecktones are playing Taft that night, too. Good luck trying to compete with Kidz Bop, Banjo Boy!

Well, that does it for this week’s live gigs…

Congratulations, you’ve reached the bonus round! Your reward? Courtney Barnett at Madison Theater on Monday, July 1st.

One of my favorite tunes of the past decade.

Tuesday, July 2nd, the Dave Matthews Band will be at Riverbend. I hate to name drop, but my youngest son went to grade school with the sons of the drum tech for DMB.

On Wednesday, July 3rd, Built to Spill is playing their classic album Keep It Like A Secret in its entirety at Woodward Theater. Crap! I’m missing Cereal Killers, GBV, Courtney Barnett and BTS? Looks like I picked the wrong week to go on vacation.

That same evening, Reel Big Fish and Aquabats are at Bogart’s, and Weird Al is playing the Fraze Pavilion in Dayton.

On Thursday… it’s the Fourth of July!

(The Cereal Killers do a killer version of this fantastic tune too!)

Most bands are taking a well-deserved holiday, so you’ll just have to play your Lee Greenwood albums.

Actually, 500 Miles to Memphis is playing the lawn by the Moerlein Lager House at 5 p.m., and Kansas is playing Red, White and Blue Ash at 8:30… but the band logo in the promo poster makes it hard to figure that out:

Hey, Bob Sumerel is playing!

On Friday 7/5, Ohio Valley Salvage is playing Camp Springs Tavern, Ben Levin and Cheryl Renee are at Wiedemann, and Thunderstruck, the AC/DC tribute, is at Bogart’s.

Broson Arroyo is playing Bogart’s on Saturday, 7/6. No, it’s not a whiffleball game (although that might be pretty cool), he’s playing music. The Tillers are the headliners at the Fountain Square free show, and the indefatigable Ben Levin is playing Lucius Q with 46 Long opening. I hate to name drop, but my oldest son had 50% of 46 Long as his English teacher in middle school.

Speaking of Saturdays, I do want to note the recent passing of guitarist Jeff Walls, of Guadalcanal Diary (and the Woggles). Jeff and his bandmates in Guadalcanal Diary deserved way more recognition and acclaim than they got.

“I do miss that pioneering sense of discovery which animated rock music fans at the dawn of the ‘80s. I don’t think that music carries the same desperate sense of importance with young people today as it did with my generation, or to the generations before me.”

Jeff Walls, from this article: https://creativeloafing.com/content-411337-HIGH-FREQUENCIES-Another-page-from-Guadalcanal-Diary

On Sunday, 7/7, Southgate House is hosting Blues, Brews and BBQ, a family-friendly event from 4-8 p.m. I know what you’re thinking right now: “Is the indefatigable Ben Levin playing?” The answer is “But of course, with Noah Wotherspoon on guitar and King Records legend Philip Paul on drums!”

That’ll do it for this week and next. Have a wonderful holiday!