Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky better batten down the hatches, because a perfect storm of local and national acts are set to descend upon the area at the first Midwest Friends Fest. Created by Scarlet Street frontman Ben Seitz and Cincy photog, journalist and all-around bon-vivant Jared Bowers, Midwest Friends Fest will occur on 31 August across 3 stages at the Southgate House Revival in Newport, KY.
The twenty bands performing include: Teens In Trouble, Bat Boy, Camping In Alaska, Kerosene Heights, Mint Green, Honeycrush, Pinksqueeze, FinalBossFight!, The Dreaded Laramie, Manor Gates, Routine Fuss, and OK Cool, Scarlet Street, Tooth Lures A Fang, Bear The Moon, Alex Kasznel & The Board of Directors, Dustbin, Abandoned Malls of America, As It May, and Ryan Rockwell.
Of the newly created fest, Seitz says says:
“There are a lot of really inspiring festivals happening right now, both big and small, and I felt that Cincinnati was really the place where something like this should be happening. We’ve got an excellent local scene, but also we’re central to some of the best music scenes happening on a national scale, so it simply makes sense for this to happen here.”
Bowers continues:
“The idea for MidWest Friends Fest is pretty simple – we wanted to bring bands that we really like to the area, some of them for the first time, and let them meet, hear, and get to know some of our favorite bands and musicians in the city, and, really, get to know the city itself,” says Jared Bowers, one of the fest’s founders. “This one’s all about connection – making connections and keeping them going – so that we can continue to see the Cincy/NKY scene flourish and grow.”
Tickets are available here now at early-bird pricing of $25.
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/
