Dayton: The Scene, vol. 1 (the music)

Dayton, Ohio is where I'm from. The first Pittsburgh, if you ask me. It's originally an industrial town. Everyone of any importance got out of this town years ago. If they didn't flat out leave the state, they at least moved south to the Dayton suburbs (where I was born,) or they went even farther south towards Cincinnati or up to Columbus or Cleveland. Dayton is dead.

It used to be beyond dead. Now that I'm living here, and the city is attempting to build things up again, remodel, demolish, and recreate - I just wonder if the continually growing, and thriving music scene really means anything. Dayton's biggest export of the last twenty years (aside from Alien Workshop Skateboards) was Guided by Voices. And they played their final show in Chicago... talk about hometown pride. Dayton has/had venues big enough to support that show. Bigger than where they chose in Chicago, and nicer, with better acoustics and a fuller bar. Guided by Voices, and particularly Bob Pollard, their leader, are known as heavy drinkers.

The music scene here is full of venues that are more than happy to give anyone a shot. The fact remains, even the worst of bands in this town can still put asses in the seats (or the bar, as the case may be). Throughout the year, you can find venues such as Elbo's, the Canal Street Tavern, The Dublin Pub, Nite Owl playing anything and everything downtown.. And then there is also always something fun going on up in Yellow Springs, home of a comedian named Dave.

The shittiest band of the last three years on a national level tries to claim Dayton as their home: Hawthorne Heights. They never played out a day of their cursed lives in Dayton. They will still get laughed off the streets if they step foot downtown, and never played outside of the Kettering city limits before they got signed. Oh, was the Cellar in Moraine? WOW, you're still 12 miles away from anything respectable, you assholes. The Attic, your venue of choice for the hometown rally whenever you're feeling down, is in Kettering. Kettering doesn't need you.

Kettering has Rob Dyrdek, professional skater, who was nice enough to donate a world class skatepark for the kids.

All the guys in that band did was make every self respecting music fan/musician ashamed to be from Ohio in the first place. You guys say your heart is in Ohio, huh? Ohio will gladly give it back to you now, and you can take it where you're wanted. Good luck. I hear Iowa's in dire need of people in the sanitation industry, because you're all full of shit. If I had it my way, there would be no more interviews in the Dayton Daily News for you bastards any time the wind changes direction. No one respects you. Your label, Victory Records, proud supporter of once quality bands such as, dare I say Thursday, doesn't need you. Sure, your shit gets on Fuse, but who can't? You need to be dropped from your label, and fast. Victory could pay three self-deserving bands the support a monthly per diem for what it takes to get you guys to get on a bus to Texas. I'm over it, Dayton is so much better than you guys ever were.

If you want REAL Dayton music, take a look at these artists. Note: Descriptions are mostly my own and not in the words of the bands themselves. Try on The Sailing for some space rock. Or, how about Yakuza Heart Attack for some electronic/full band punk-esque chaos? Also take a look at Captain of Industry who are indie in a popish manner, but better than that probably sounds. Not your thing? How about Halos Were Found at the Landing Site who describe themselves as indie rock for arenas. I think that fits those guys pretty well. Or possibly eyediedtrying who are pure metal, in the best sense of the word. You can't miss Romance of Young Tigers who may be harder to classify, but that’s not really a bad thing. They’re recording through the month of July. The now defunct High Plains Drifter (HPD)were just constant amazement for everyone who witnessed their shows. The members of HPD seem to be getting some quality solo projects up and running as we speak, including: Engine the Gun and Arms Race, both of which are as yet unclassifiable in any cut and dry way. Or hell, even give Words as Weapons a try. They’re screamo, but in the best sense of the word.

The guys in that last band are from a quasi-country community just north of Dayton and are putting in some time, doing what they love, and singing for the kids. They're not singing to the kids, there is a difference. Tyler, a guitarist of theirs, was in my fall quarter Sociology class at Wright State. He's a super nice guy, and deserves anything he and his bandmates will ever get. He knows the history of their scene. What's it all about.

All of these bands have that DIY feeling that you HAVE to do it on your own. Just like Stephen Malkmus famously sang in his band Pavement's song entitled 'Range Life' - "You gotta pay your dues, before you pay your rent." Although he's from Northern California, the kids with the world at their feet in Dayton, Ohio seem to have heard him, or at least believe in a similar sentiment. And they're all doing it the way he was trying to tell us to. The Gospel According to Malkmus is a beautiful thing, for it seems to have served us well.

And just one more guy... Thrill Nova (pure hip hop, in the tradition of Wu-Tang, or older east coast rap). He's the new self-proclaimed God MC with a mic (think: Nas). As Thrill Nova himself likes to say "scream at him, when you see him." And you will see Thrill Nova too, soon enough.

I'd like to thank my friend Young Fonz of the Dirty Thirty for exposing me to this wonderful breath of fresh air so badly needed in the hip hop scene. Thrill Nova's collective, Animal House, is on the rise.

And all of the artists mentioned above can be listened to on MySpace.com. No links needed, just type any enticing band name into search on the music function and you'll find them. I guess that's probably true for Hawthorne Heights, too, but... who cares? It's mostly bad music on that site anyway, so they fit in just fine on the internet, which is where they should stay anyway.


The best of luck to all of you in Dayton who continue to keep making the sounds you love to make on a steady basis with continually great results.

And if you want a copy of the above artists' work on a CD, I can help you get your hands on it.

Woot! If you're reading these words, and you're not me, then you may be the first one to see this horrible excuse for a blog. Congratulations? Uh, tell all your friends? Wait...why would you do that? I have an introduction, some links, a profile, and a post about a comedian who makes me laugh. What do you get out of this so far? Nothing. Time to make things interesting

The name of this blog: midwest to question mark, is meant to showcase anything coming out of the midwest, Ohio specifically (where I'm living), that you don't know about. Feasably because you're somewhere other than the midwest. Maybe even another country. The two people whose blogs I've read using this service are from England, and they're artists. I'm no artist, but I can write like a mother fucker sometimes. So if you do art, are from the Midwestern United States, and want someone to write about it and hopefully get your work out there, well e-mail me your work if you can. Get ahold of me at lucid_chicanery@yahoo.com. It doesn't matter what it is, I'll read every e-mail I get on that account. Same goes for music you made with you/your friends, poetry, prose, whatever you do, send it this way if you want it to get promoted. (I realize it's not a major site at this time, and I know that this should change as soon as I get things to promote).

If you're wondering what I'm into - click on the link entitled space and it's my myspace. I'm beginning to hate myspace, but I've been there for so many years that it's just hard to get away from. As you may be able to tell, I love music of all types. OK, well, fuck modern country. If that's what you make, I don't want to hear it. Anything else? Then send it here.


Oh, so you make films of some sort? That's cool, I like em all. If you made it, you should be able to get some sort of write up. I'll be honest, but I won't be mean. If it sucks, I'll say it's rough. It doesn't suck, because you know you can do better. If you made it, you put it in the work, and you edited the best you know how - then it'll at least be entertaining if not plain great.

Poetry/prose. Poetry is what you do? Send it all. Essays, short stories, novelettes, even a novel you just wrote? I'll read it. Then I'll write about it. I am a writer myself, so I always like to see what people are doing. And, I WILL NOT steal your story ideas. If they're good, then they're yours, and you deserve to have your art not infringed on by me or anyone else. If it's really good, then I'll promote the hell out of it, in places aside from this website, or the internet at all. I do know a publisher or two in a good place. I'm pretty much a journalist - and I'm way too early into college to even think about writing for anything other than the school paper. And my school paper fucking sucks. So here I am.

If you create, I'll evaluate, promote, and things will be good. That is all for now.

So, uh, here is the website of a comedian I know named Jesse Nutt. He happens to be the father of an ex-girlfriend of mine, but she cool, so check this website out, it's http://www.leftnuttrightnutt.com.

The site is pretty new, so it's rough, but if you're wanting the funny check out the link on that page to his myspace and the one link on his site to a short clip of one of his (albeit shorter than not) routines that he has entitled 'dookie tooth'. He's a hoot and half, and yet I have never seen him live. He was always funny around the Nutt House, as I will now call his home, but I never really knew how great his comedy routine was until I stumbled upon his myspace awhile back. And that is pretty new itself. Anyway, if you like to laugh, and/or like politics, and/or like to click links, then go to Jesse Nutt's brand new webpage which feature views from the right wing and left wing sides as well as an all Jesse side. And they're all fucking nutt's!

And Mr. Nutt, if you happen to see this page, well, I'm sorry for not being completely normal myself. Best of wishes to you and your family, though. And happy comedy-ing, good sir.

I'd like to welcome all of you, albeit not too many, to this little spot where I will probably update at least once a day.

What will I write? I know not. Will there be pictures? I would think so, at least some of the time. Will I like it? Well I will, so you should too, if you so choose to. And unimportantly, will this blog make it to the big time, make this guy a blog celeb? I doubt it, but here's hoping, I suppose? I don't care either way, as long as I still like it, I will continue to write here. Maybe you'll read it, maybe you won't. But if you like what you see then you might as well say so. That'd make me kind of happy, knowing at least someone liked what I wrote.


You shouldn't comment this update, as it is my first, and don't expect it to be that great. But, happy reading, for those of you happen to care. Namaste.