…when the Dayton Dirt Collective opened its doors in May 2008, they offered opportunities to a much wider base of local talent and fans than the prevailing venue array at the time would allow. For the past two years, the club sought out and brought in a diverse blend of touring acts, not to mention giving opportunities to those here in Dayton as well. Unfortunately, after a shift in structure this past fall, the Dayton Dirt Collective issued a statement last evening announcing they will be closing their doors. From Shelly “GladGirl” Hulce:

Thanks Dayton and touring bands of the USA!
You made Dayton Dirt Collective a success for nearly 2 years! (and that is equal to 10 years in Dayton time.)

The DDC space is officially history as of Sunday (last night).
We are sad but equally excited about new projects that are on the horizon! Stay tuned!

This was the time to make a responsible choice and end with integrity.
We have left all our bills paid, our obligations met and our relationships in good standing with each other and the community. In today’s world, that is saying A LOT!
This was not a failure by any means, it is the end of a season.
Now the collective members move on to make new dreams and passions materialize.
The positive ripples of the DDC remain deep and wide.

We love you all.
Thanks for helping make history in Dayton of Ohio, United States of America!
Now, go out there and be the change you want!
This experiment was proof that YOU can do it!

Special thank you to the founding members of DDC, especially Punk Rock Nick Anderson, for doing the hard stuff and gettin’ shit done in this town!
YOU ARE THE MODERN DAY HEROES OF DAYTON! You made history my friends.

MUSIC = FRIENDSHIP

…having dramatically affected the landscape of the Dayton music scene over the past 18 months, the lovable Dayton Dirt Collective is undergoing some dramatic shifts in management and policy. At the forefront of this shift you’ll find Jim Tarjeft, formerly of the Canon Art Collective. While the most obvious changes taking place have to do with the stage and performance space, there are a number of policies changing that will affect membership and show-goers alike. If you want to get the lowdown on all that’s happening, and possibly even get involved yourself, head on down to the Dayton Dirt Collective this evening for an Open House from 7-9 pm. Refreshments will be provided, as will music and dancing. Get dirty….

…last summer, we hosted Columbus outfit Flotation Walls and witnessed a captivating live set by one of the most inventive indie outfits in the region. The quartet take up the anthemic mantle of The Polyphonic Spree and steering toward a slightly less-psychedelic realm of freakiness from Of Montreal or The Flaming Lips. Flotation Walls weave a intimate-yet-bombastic tapestry of chamber pop fused with electronic experimentation and classically-trained flourishes, delicately framing existentially-driven lyrics that compliment each other perfectly and heighten the intensity of each. Taken together with their pseudo-militaristic uniforms, FW leave little to be desired in terms of presentation. Flotation Walls are currently touring out in support of their self-released debut album, Nature, which you can pick up in digital & physical form HERE…

….Flotation Walls will be at Dayton Dirt Collective this evening with Finding Fiction [NY] and Space Race…

MP3: Flotation Walls “Willis the Fireman”

…over the past decade, James Demaree has led the Portland, OR outift The Unit Breed through over a dozen releases and twice as many lineup changes to forge a understated, ethereal aesthetic fusing psych/post-punk elements together into a demented dream state. The band roll through Dayton Dirt Collective this evening in the midst of an extended US tour in support of their Always Distance the Lonely album. The show starts at 7 and is open to ALL AGES…

Sep 23 – Dayton OH / Dayton Dirt Collective 144 East Third Street 45402

Sep 24 – Hamtramck MI / The Painted Lady 2930 Jacob St. 48212

Sep 25 – Duluth MN / Glensheen Mansion with: Knife World from MPLS, Moonstone from MPLS, The Brothers Band

Sep 26 – Milwaukee WI / Ground Zero (House Show) 2650 N Richard St. 53212

Sep 27 – Chicago IL / The Orphanage 643 W 31st St. 60616

Sep 28 – Ames Iowa / Ames Progressive 118 Hayward Ave 50014

Sep 29 – Kansas City MO / Still waiting on details

Sep 30 – Live at 4 on St. Paul pirate radio show

Sep 30 – Minneapolis MN / still waiting on details

Oct 1 – Vermillion SD / with We All Have Hooks for Hands.

Oct 2 – Bismarck ND / Project Noise 1144 Summit Blvd 58504. All Ages with Zebra Corpse and The Vexed

Oct 3 – ND, SD, WY / Please help

Oct 4 – ND, SD / Please help

Oct 5 – Aberdeen SD / Red Rooster / 202 S Main St 8pm / All Ages / No Alcohol

Oct 6 – Kearney NE / The Roman / 2004 Central Ave 68847

Oct 7 – Wichita KS / Kirby’s Beer Store 3227 e 17th wichita, ks 67208 / With Low Oriale

Oct 8 – Denver CO / 3 Kings 60 S Broadway 80209 with Captured by Robots.

Oct 9 – UT, WY, ID / Pleas help

Oct 10 – Garden City ID / VAC (Visual Arts Collective) 3638 Osage St 83714 With The Universal and Good Friday.

Oct 17 – Portland OR / The Backspace 115 NW 5th Ave with Pregnant, Golden Holy, Worker Bee. This will be our official album release! The Unit Breed are pretty much taking a break after this with talk of crashing the Gingerbread House during Halloween.

…as we mentioned earlier this week, Wake Up Mordecai will celebrate the release of his new album, Too Young for the Disco, tonight at Dayton Dirt Collective. Let us reiterate that we highly recommend to check out this new release. Along for the ride this evening will be some of Dayton’s finest practitioners of indie pop, Towhee, Jesse Remnant and the Trainwrecks, and XL427. Things get started around 7 pm, so don’t be late…

MP3: Wake Up Mordecai “Cowboys and Indians”
MP3: Towhee “Calm Down”
MP3: Jesse Remnant “Better Than You”
MP3: XL427 “It’s Not Just Pink, It’s New Wave Pink”

…for a kid who’s still not even out of high school, John Callon aka Wake Up Mordecai is making quite a name for himself in the Dayton music scene. His debut EP North to the Nth Degree (out last fall) got quite a bit of attention in the local press and already he’s dropping a second release with Poptek Records, the full-length, Too Young for the Disco. Retaining much of the understated charm of his first release, Morti ups the ante this time around, however, fleshing out the arrangements with sugary guitar lines and lush harmonies. While there is plenty of ear candy to enjoy, the melancholic fringes give the disc a depth that begs repeated spins. Wake Up Mordecai will be celebrating the release of Too Young for the Disco with a show at Dayton Dirt Collective this Saturday, May 23, so tune in now…

MP3: Wake Up Mordecai “Cowboys and Indians”
MP3: Wake Up Mordecai “Kinky Girl Scout Cookies”

…so tonight is the night when the enitre Miami Valley region rallies to contest the current conventional wisdom that Dayton is a dying city with its semi-annual Urban Nights event. In addition to the countless sanctioned diversions presented by the benevolent city governments, you’ve also got a pair of great offerings from those that do their best to elevate Dayton throughout the year: The Circus and the Dayton Dirt Collective. Dig the posters for the lowdown. We’ll see you out on the streets…

…as we mentioned earlier this week the anarchist-folkies of Holy!Holy!Holy! will be rolling into the Dayton Dirt Collective tonight. Along for the ride are locals Akillis Green, State School and Kris N. Although seemingly subdued for a Friday night, we’re thinking this could be one of the best shows this season. See you there…

…following their last stop through the Dayton Dirt Collective, St. Charles, Missouri collective Holy!Holy!Holy! left quite a buzz in their wake. Upon finally hearing them, we understood why. It could just as easily be a hundred years ago, sitting out at an IWW camp meeting listening to songs of the workingman. Through their hypnotic singalongs/growls/spoken word and acoustic instrumentation (well, mostly), the music and politics of HHH seem to be inextricably linked. You can read more about their views on their blog here and listen to their new EP, If I Can’t Revolt It’s Not My Dance, here. Holy!Holy!Holy! will return to the DDC this Friday, April 3. See you there…

MP3: Holy!Holy!Holy! “From The Bottom Up”
MP3: Holy!Holy!Holy! “Gone Like Jesus”

…as we previously announced, Vandalia high-schooler John Callon aka Wake Up Mordecai is already planning a follow up to last year’s acclaimed North to the Nth Degree. According to Poptek Records, the label will issue Too Young for the Disco with a Release Party at Dayton Dirt Collective on May 23. Here’s the tracklisting for the disc:

01. LOVEMACHINE5000
02. That’s What She Said
03. Kinky Girl Scout Cookies
04. Orange Soda
05. Dignan
06. Bach Called – he wants his orchestra back
07. XOXO
08. Infinity x2
09. Disco = Crack
10. You’re the Bomb(bay)
11. Cowboys and Indians

…if you want to keep up to the minute with the Wake Up Mordecai universe, you can tune in to his blog over here. Rest assured, we’ll keep you posted as we get more information…

MP3: Wake Up Mordecai “Girls Don’t Ride On Viking Ships” from North to the Nth Degree