I love the custom GoogleMaps that you can create. An easy one to put together is one that shows where you have traveled, lived and plan to visit. You can check mine out HERE, but I want to see where everyone has been too…so create your own and post the link as a comment.
I have taken mine a step further and placed links to my photo galleries of the places I have been to and photographed (photos from Charlotte, NC and Greenville, SC should be up shortly).
You have a great opportunity to give back next week and help save the lives of millions of children around the world. On March 16th – 22nd you can pay $1 for drinking tap water at local participating restaurants. Cincinnati is one of 16 cities (only Midwestern city other than Chicago) leading the 2008 campaign for UNICEF nationwide so we can really show our stuff on an international level.
There will be a kickoff event on Friday, March 14th at Bang Nightclub from 6:30pm-10:30pm. Overall more than 80 area restaurants (and growing) will be participating in this campaign. All of the proceeds will go to provide safe drinking water to children around the world.
A new music festival will fill that Spring time music festival void in Cincinnati on March 22nd at the Southgate House in Newport, KY.
NatiGroove will feature a diverse collection of some of the best regional artists with two popular local artists headlining the event. Local jamgrass heroes Rumpke Mountain Boys and the innovate, style-mashing band Eclipse will headline the event. This event is staring off strong with a solid & diverse mix of artists and should offer something for everyone.
Tickets are just $12 for the the festival and it will begin at 9:00pm as national DJ Rare Groove kicks things off in Ballroom. The eclectic and soulful band Sexual Disaster will follow along the first headliner, Eclipse. Rumpke Mountain Boys will close the event.
I had a chance to interview Frank Meyer, from FMG Entertainment (organizing the festival), and this is a group that is a homegrown company that is looking to provide, “what we’re missing in Cincinnati” in terms of the music scene. This is their largest endeavor to date and they are extremely focused in the Over-the-Rhine area and would eventually like to move this event to either Downtown or OTR.
Lineup Info:
DJ RARE GROOVE – Known as the Blueprint’s touring DJ, don’t miss Rare Groove as he brings his 1988 hip-hop beats and Blueprint flavor to spin fire back in the Nati just before he kicks off his North American tour with Atmosphere and Abstract Rude. 9:00pm – 9:45pm & in-between all sets Downstairs in the Ballroom
SEXUAL DISASTER QUARTET – Is sex good…disaster bad… or what? With universal consciousness, Sexual Disaster Quartet is bringing their soulful, driving, innovative music to the Nati with a disastrously explosive sound that spontaneously combusts into orgasmic jams moving listeners to aftermath of molten, undeniable wetness. 9:45pm – 10:45pm Downstairs in the Ballroom
ECLIPSE – Those high-energy musical innovators Eclipse are back with their style-mashin grooves. With influences ranging from Led Zeppelin to Ozomatli and Herbie Hancock, Eclipse continuously pushes musical boundaries by incorporating elements of rock, funk, latin, jazz & hip-hop into a tight and complex sound. 11:00pm – 12:15am Downstairs in the Ballroom
RUMPKE MOUNTAIN BOYS – Just the good ol’ boys, Never meanin’ no harm. Call it Newgrass or Jamgrass or Bluegrass — any way you slice it, Rumpke Mountain Boys are one of the Nati’s premiere Bluegrass crews and have built a solid following throughout the city and the Midwest with their lively, jamming sound. 12:30am – 1:45am Downstairs in the Ballroom
RUSTY VAN BAND – Rusty Van Band mixes it up with a blend of jam rock, reggae, bluegrass, and blues. They play mostly original music throughout a range of venues in the Nati. 12:15am – 1:30am Upstairs in the Parlour
As some of you may know, I have been out of town (Atlanta) on business for the past couple of months. For the past two weeks I was shipped off to another area (Baton Rouge) to continue my work, and I thought I would relay my thoughts on Louisiana to the great readers of UrbanCincy.
I spent most of my time in Baton Rouge. I will say that the people are very laid back and easy to get along with, but with that said…Baton Rouge seemed to be lacking any coherent development pattern(s), disposable income, and most importantly it was muggy even in February. The place was alright. Downtown had a few museums, lots of government buildings and some new construction. Overall Baton Rouge was kind of dirty, a little sloppy and somewhat depressing.
I was also able to spend a weekend in New Orleans. I spent the majority of my time there in the French Quarter and loved every minute. There were some other nice areas that I saw (Magazine Street), but overall New Orleans seemed to have many of the same qualities as Baton Rouge but on a larger scale.
The Lower 9th Ward looks as if the hurricane had just recently hit, and the place is almost entirely vacant. The CBD was kind of creepy and not all that comfortable. If you would like to hear more rantings and most importantly see my pictures of the cities…check out my photo threads on UrbanOhio.
The Garden District (Baton Rouge)
Downtown Baton Rouge
New Orleans’ French Quarter
As mentioned before, UrbanCincy has worked out a relationship with the Blue Wisp Jazz Club downtown. Thursday nights offer UrbanCincy readers $3 off of the cover charge. This week includes the talented Rob Allgeyer Organ Trio w/Dan Drees and Ron Enyard.
Additionally, UrbanCincy now also has a deal with the Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati. If you mention UrbanCincy you can get Buy 1, Get 1 half off Adult tickets to any evening performance (not valid on opening night). The next show to start up is Radio Golf (3/19 – 4/6) and you should not miss this show. All you need to do is contact the box office at 513.421.3555 (you can not get this offer online, only by calling). Tickets are going extremely fast to this performance so get ’em while they’re hot.
Get out and take advantage of these UrbanCincy exclusive offers. The more you do, the better the chance more of these pop up in the future.