Wcpo Lounge Acts

“Silverton’s a place, just like Brooklyn is a place.” That's the message at the heart of Sons of Silverton’s music. Emcees KyleDavid and Citoak have been in Cincinnati’s hip-hop scene separately for decades, working with acts like The Five Deez and The Watusi Tribe. But making music together didn't start until more recently, when KyleDavid rapped on a solo Citoak single. “In the process of doing that, Sons of Silverton just worked its way in,” Citoak said. “It felt right.” “We all have varied histories,” KyleDavid said. “It just made sense for us to come together.” Since then, Sons of Silverton released “Or Forever Hold Your Peace” in 2017, and their latest album, “GodGotUs”, which dropped in 2021. On the title track “GodGotUs,” Son of Silverton’s chanting chorus creates a driving energy of confidence and motivation. For KyleDavid, it expresses positive momentum. “You continue moving forward and keep driving and eventually things will work out in your favor,” he said. The track serves as a history lesson in C

"Unframed pop and not folksy folk," Cincinnati singer/songwriter Mol Sullivan tried to explain about her songwriting. Adding, “there are elements of a lot of things.” She's right that her music is hard to place in a genre, yet Sullivan has crafted a sound that is undenyably her own. Her songs are ethereal, sincere, and almost magical. For her session for WCPO Lounge Acts, Sullivan performed three songs from her upcoming full-length album that's still in the works, as well as a new single set to drop July, 2022. Set list: 0:00 - intro 0:32 - Cowboy 5:28 - Cautiously 8:27 - interview 15:04 - Deep End Dive 18:51 - Lamb 23:03 - outro Mol Sullivan: https://www.molsullivan.com/ https://molsullivan.bandcamp.com/ WCPO Lounge Acts: https://www.wcpo.com/loungeacts Recorded June 16, 2022 Hosted by Brian Niesz Produced by Brian Niesz See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alternative indie-pop band Quotah is among the 27 local and regional acts performing at The Northside Rock & Roll Carnival over the holiday weekend. Quotah performs for WCPO Lounge Acts from The Lodge KY in Dayton, KY. Setlist: 0:00 - intro 0:30 - Cranberry 4:35 - Crash and Burn 8:37 - interview 12:58 - That'll Do, Pig 16:28 - Different Endings 20:30 - outro Quotah: https://www.quotahmusic.com/ https://www.facebook.com/quotahmusic Northside Rock'n'Roll Carnival: https://northsiderocks.com/ WCPO Lounge Acts: https://www.wcpo.com/loungeacts Recorded June 22, 2022 Hosted by Brian Niesz Produced by Brian Niesz See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Imagine the ugliest Honda Civic driving by your house and all you can hear over the engine is Arlen Gun Club playing on the speakers. That’s the mental picture singer/guitarist Leo Martini hopes Arlen Gun Club’s brand of 00-era emo-inspired pop-punk will paint. On their debut self-titled album, the band really nails that sound. “We started kinda writing 90’s stuff,” Martini said. “Honestly, I listened to a lot of Nirvana growing up and that’s my main inspiration for making music.” “I listen to a lot of the late-90’s early-00’s emo,” bassist Jacob Durham added. Although it could almost be mistaken for a long lost Drive-Thru Records release circa 2002, Alren Gun Club’s album is able to channel their vintage influences without sounding trite. The songs are catchy, moody and fun. The album is out now on streaming, but the band has plans for physical media as well. “We were lucky enough to partner with a couple labels. Our main label is Rat Poison Recordings and she’s doing all the preorders with shirts and

Veronica Grim has been singing her lungs out for some time, but with her latest album “Chaos Magic” she’s singing her heart out too. The album is set to release Saturday, May 28 on all streaming platforms and will be celebrated with a performance at Fountain Square for their Spring Concert Series. Grim has released music with rockabilly punk band Switchblade Syndicate as well as a country album under the name Veronica Grim and the Heavy Hearts. Although it’s not her first album, “Chaos Magic” is her first album to be released simply as Veronica Grim. That nuance is one Grim finds liberating, calling the album “an evolution of not being trapped in any one creative space, any one genre, or any one box.” It’s easy to see why Grim feels so restricted by genres. Her bold, sultry voice is as suited for outlaw country as it is blues rock, indie, or emo. When Grim formed her band and started recording, she had that freedom in mind. “Nobody came into it with the intent of making a record that had to be any one t

Cincinnati's “cinematic alternative” band Lung  is made up of opera-trained singer and cellist Kate Wakefield and rock drummer Daisy Caplan. Wakefield’s cello is a defining element of Lung’s sound. While cello is not a frequently featured instrument in rock, she says she finds it liberating. “It’s really versatile, I don’t know why more rock bands don’t use them,” Wakefield said. Wakefield’s talent at cello has also afforded her lots of collaborations with local artists like Jess Lamb, Wonky Tonk, and Wussy, saying “in the Cincinnati area, it’s really fun when you play the cello because everyone wants you to play on their album.” “Come Clean Right Now” was written over the course of the pandemic as Caplan urged Wakefield to send ideas back and forth over the internet. “The pandemic was unexpected. Everything shut down and we canceled tours. I was pretty bummed out, but Daisy knows that it cheers me up when I write music,” Wakefield said. “It was the coping mechanism of the early pandemic for us.” On the

Aprina Johnson, better known as AprinasRevolutionaryLove, is a singer/songwriter/activist who uses music and love to enhance her community. Aprina’s music is soulful, funky, and above all passionate. But you can’t just hit her up on Spotify; you have to go see her perform live. “I just feel like it’s over-saturated right now to be in the digital world looking for likes and streams,” Aprina said. Perhaps an exception to that rule, AprinasRevolutionaryLove recently performed live for WCPO Lounge Acts. When the pandemic started, Aprina replaced her canceled gigs with performances in front yards and porches all around her neighborhood. “I was very blessed to be able to bring songs and messages and feelings of love and adoration to my community through music at that time,” she said. Aprina believes music and love can be “weaponized” to better her community and explained “when you’re able to really move and show people the mechanics of what love is, then it becomes this thing that combats real weapons like di

For local music fans, Jess Lamb and the Factory are a staple of Cincinnati music. Others may remember Lamb from Season 14 of American Idol. This Thanksgiving, the band will help celebrate with music. The group teamed up with Arnold’s Bar and Grill, Neltner Small Batch, Otto Printing and Mus-i-col Records to offer hand-crafted limited edition 7-inch vinyl records. The records feature two songs from Jess Lamb and the Factory and the sleeves were hand dipped at Maker’s Mark. They’ll be giving away 150 on opaque red vinyl. A limited number of copies pressed on clear, pink and black splatter vinyl will be available at local record stores Shake It Records, Everybody's Records, Plaid Room Records, Torn Light Records and Herzog Records on Black Friday. The 7-inch record features music from the band’s 2020 album, You Are. Recorded during the lockdown, You Are contains a collection of what Lamb calls “misplaced songs.” Making music during a pandemic can be a challenge. “I felt like I needed to be more calm and c

"I love to sing pretty, but I also like to turn up the guitar." That's how Cincinnati singer/songwriter Sarah Asher described her sound during her performance for WCPO Lounge Acts. Asher's music blends her folk roots with 90s-influenced alternative rock, but is unique enough to avoid being lumped into either genre. "I've never really gotten along with genres really well," she said. "I'm a songwriter and I love melodies." Asher used the downtime from quarantine not only as an opportunity to write music, but also as an opportunity to collaborate. Asher traveled to Echo Mountain Recording in Ashville, NC to record her new album with studio musicians who would've normally been unavailable. "Since there were a lot of musicians that were grounded, we were able to get some people that would normally be touring," Asher explained. Asher would return to Ashville to shoot a music video for her song "Summer Never Came." Written in spring 2020, Asher described the song as "looking ahead to the summer and the uncer

Not many indie rock bands can fit blistering guitar solos into their moody songs, but Nashville's Safari Room sure can. The band formed when the quartet met while attending music school at Belmont College in Nashville. "We all did music school and were definitely playing in different groups," singer/guitarist Alec Koukol explained. "Safari Room came out of my writings and I brought these guys along on it. We've been going heavy since 2018." Shortly before the pandemic brought the world to a halt, Safari Room were just finishing up their debut full-length, 'Look Me Up When You Get There.' The band decided to stay the course, and the album dropped in July of 2020. "We might as well just open up the door and let folks in rather than holding on to it and waiting," Koukol said. "We'll get to go tour when get to go tour; which is happening now." On their album, Safari Room blends dreamy melodic indie rock with power-pop sensibilities. Guitarist Chris Collier is notable for his ability bust out impressive lick

Wonky Tonk and The Highlife are an alternative/Americana band from Covington, Kentucky.  Fronted by singer/songwriter Jasmine "Wonky Tonk" Poole, the group joined WCPO Lounge Acts on the patio at Northside Yacht Club to perform songs from their 2020 album Lessons & Lovers. Find out more at https://www.wonkytonkmusic.com/   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While live music was shut down during the pandemic, Cincinnati band Heavy Hinges didn’t miss a beat when it came to writing songs. Over the past year, Heavy Hinges crafted enough new material to record a live album at Urban Artifact in Northside and still perform all new songs during their WCPO Lounge Acts recording at Northside Yacht Club. “We write songs very easily together. It’s just a very organic process,” singer MayaLou Banatwala said while holding her purple Brazilian wood electric ukulele. “We all wore masks the whole time. Now we’re all completely vaccinated.” Guitarist and singer Dylan Speeg said he enjoyed the extra time spent on songwriting. “It was interesting to write songs without any shows,” he said. “We really took a lot of time with our songwriting because we didn’t have to get them done for anything.” Heavy Hinges consists of Banatwala and Speeg, along with Brian Williamson on drums, Kirk Hunter on guitar, and Andrew Laudeman on bass. At its heart, Heavy Hinges is a melting pot of in

“Country music is alive and well in Wilder still today.” Sitting with his acoustic guitar in his lap, those are the first lyrics Bobby Mackey sang for his recent WCPO Lounge Acts session recorded at his music venue, Bobby Mackey’s Music World, in Wilder, Kentucky. They couldn't be more true. Mackey is a local country music legend and his music venue is just as iconic. That’s not hyperbole: Mackey was inducted into the Northern Kentucky Music Legends Hall of Fame in 2012, and signs for the city of Wilder proudly read “Home of Bobby Mackey’s Music World." Mackey himself is classic, having been making country music for 50 years. Although the times and styles have changed, Mackey sees himself as a champion of classic country music — although he’d insist on calling it just “country.” “What they’re calling country today, I resent the fact they call it country,” he explained during his Lounge Acts performance. “I’m not putting it down. Time goes on, but… it sure ain’t country.” It’s a feeling Mackey explores i

Cincinnati punk band Tweens preview four new songs on WCPO  Lounge Act See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If Cincinnati rap duo Patterns of Chaos were anime, their weapons would be microphones. During their Lounge Acts taping, Patterns of Chaos performed two new songs from their next album, "Chaotic Good." The songs, "Fruenlaven" and "Spazzin,'" show off Jay Hill's dynamic to drop jokes and serious topics side-by-side. Find out more about Patterns of Chaos: Bandcamp Spotify Instagram Facebook See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Perhaps the greatest challenge in writing about Cincinnati’s up-and-coming singer Bla'szé is attempting to describe her style. Last year, Bla'szé performed at the Cincinnati Entertainment Awards and was nominated in the “R&B/funk/soul” category. Yet, even combining three genres isn’t quite enough to describe Bla'szé. “I love to do all types of music,” she said during her WCPO Lounge Acts appearance at Northside Yacht Club. “Whatever I’m feeling in the moment, that’s what it’s going to be,” Bla'szé said casually, seemingly unimpressed by her own versatility. “If I want to rap, I’m probably going to rap. If I want to sing a little more, I’m going to sing a little more.” As talented as she is at singing, Bla'szé first pursued a dance career at the University of Cincinnati's College Conservatory of Music where she graduated in 2013 with her bachelor in fine arts in ballet. When injury sidelined her dance prospects, she turned her focus to singing. “Being in ballet is really what I need to get the confidence

Cincinnati-based singer Emmaline might be a young musician, but she's got a vintage voice. "I grew up listening to jazz," Emmaline said during her WCPO Lounge Acts session. "My dad's a jazz pianist, so I was really heavily influence by jazz, R&B, and classic soul." Some music fans may recognize Emmaline from her Billie-Holiday-style performance of Jessie J's "Domino" with Postmodern Jukebox, a group that puts old spins on new songs. On her latest single, "Peppermint Kisses," Emmaline said she wanted to "give an interesting spin on a classic love song." "Peppermint Kisses" is the first single from Emmaline's upcoming EP "Necessity," out Oct. 2. Because many recording studios are closed due to the pandemic, the entire EP was recorded in Emmaline's basement studio. "We wanted to do something that was safe but also effective," Emmaline explained. "So we thought recording at home would be the best option." For her WCPO Lounge Acts session, Emmaline performed "Peppermint Kisses" as well as "All My Sweetest D

Cincinnati shoegaze band Slow Glows planned to kick off a three-week tour to the SXSW music festival in Austin, Texas, in March. COVID-19 changed the band's plans. The trio, made up of singer/guitarist Kelli Redding, bassist Ian Gorby and drummer Rachel Thode, had a release show for its latest single, “Sigh,” at MOTR Pub in Over-the-Rhine on March 6, but the following tour wouldn’t last. “We got two dates into that and had to turn around, which was kind of a bummer,” Redding said during the band’s WCPO Lounge Acts session. Music video for "Sigh" by Slow Glows.   “Shoegaze,” for the uninitiated, is best defined by guitar effects, dreamy vocals and intense volumes to create ethereal-sounding alternative rock. “To me it’s like rock music that has kind of a dreamy, spacy element to it,” Redding explained. “It’s lots of use of effects pedals to get that ambiance, other-worldly element.” The influence of 90s shoegaze icons like My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive is apparent on the band’s 2019 debut LP, “Starga

Blending blues, rock 'n' roll, punk and early American music with modern forms, Austin, Texas-based duo Ghost Wolves is no stranger to MOTR Pub. The band has made the Cincinnati music venue a repeat stop during its almost eight years of touring.This time is a little different. The group returns to MOTR Friday fresh off the release of its three-song single "Crooked Cop" on Jack White-founded label Third Man Records . For singer and guitarist Carley Wolf, the partnership with Third Man was a big deal."We're just fans of the label," she said in a news release. "They have so many of our heroes in their catalogs, people like Muddy Waters, Wanda Jackson, Dead Weather, Jerry Lee Lewis, the White Stripes. It's mind-blowing that our music will be there alongside them. It doesn't feel real, it feels like a dream."Carley and drummer Jonny Wolf, who have been married for seven years, wrote and recorded the songs against a backdrop of fear and uncertainty in their personal lives. Immediately

Erika Wennerstrom, the lead of Heartless Bastards, released her debut solo album, “Sweet Unknown,” in March of 2018 on Partisan Records.Wennerstrom’s solo songs are built on the same blues and folk foundations as her songs with the Bastards, but her flirtations with both psychedelic sounds and pop sensibilities are both ambitious and clear on “Sweet Unknown.” Although the break with the band was mutual, Wennerstrom seems to be basking in newfound freedom, singing “I walk around this crowded town / I had to re-find my way / You know I couldn't remain the same / What it is, what it is, what it is / Don't fight the change within” on her song “Good to Be Alone.”Set List:Extraordinary LoveTwisted Highway- interview -Staring Out the WindowLetting GoWennerstrom also performed a cover of Townes Van Zandt's "Be Here to Love Me" that is available on the WCPO Lounge Acts YouTube channel.--Erika Wennerstrom's second WCPO Lounge Acts session was recorded on June 14, 2019 in the WCPO Digital Lounge in Cincinnati, OH.WCPO L