Southgate House closing sends Winter Blues Fest to Cincinnati | Arts & Culture

CINCINNATI (FOX19) - On February 10 and 11, 2012, the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood of Cincinnati will be rocking with more than 25 local blues bands. The Cincy Blues Society's Winter Blues Fest celebrates over two decades of supporting the Blues with the same great music, but a new location. The annual festival showcases the best local and regional Blues musicians for two nights, from 7:00 pm to 1:00 am.

The Southgate House in Newport, KY, was the home of the Winter Blues Fest for the past few years, but after Southgate announced its closing in early December 2011, Fest coordinators scouted the area for a new location. "Because we have bands playing on multiple stages simultaneously, we needed to find a venue that would provide the high-quality sound that our bands are used to, as well as keep the sound of the bands from overlapping each other," said Mark Bubash, festival coordinator. "The ideal venue turned out to be four venues: The Drinkery, Below Zero, the former Rhythm & Blues Cafe, and the former Harry's Pizza location in Over-the-Rhine. We visited a lot of places that had pros and cons, but in the end, this was the best fit for our needs."

The former Harry's Pizza location (1207 Main Street) will be a free, all-ages venue, with special performances by Cincy Blues Society's Blues in the Schools (BITS) Band, as well as other blues artists. "This event is the primary fundraiser for the BITS program, and we're happy to be able to provide a dedicated stage to highlight the talent and hard work of the students in the program," says Bubash.  "By keeping the blues alive though these young musicians, we're helping to inspire future blues performers and fans."

More than 25 local and regional blues bands will perform over two nights. A special feature this year is Friday night's Ladies Night: The Drinkery stage will feature bands that are all fronted by women. Headlining Friday's Ladies Night is internationally touring artist Kelly Richey. Nashville musician RB Stone headlines on Saturday, bringing a unique Americana blues sound to the stage, backed by local artists, the Cincy Blues All-Stars.  

Advance tickets are now available for purchase online at the Brown Paper Tickets website (http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/217480) for $15 (plus a $1.52 service fee per ticket).  On each day of the show, tickets at the door will be $15 for Cincy Blues Society members, and $25 for the general public.

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