Aquabear County Fair / October 22-25
By Kevin Biggs, Contributor
The Athens music scene is rich with DIY musicians and bands supported by independent labels, most of them from Ohio. A lot of talent makes its way to this town, and it will all be celebrated this weekend with 18 different bands playing at five different venues in four nights as Aquabear Legion celebrates the 9th annual Aquabear County Fair this weekend.
Aquabear Legion was founded in 2004 by Brian Koscho and Todd Jacobs, who wanted to find a way to connect and support Ohio bands. Their project started in their hometown of Cleveland and later branched out to Athens. Over the years, the project “has morphed into doing anything we can to spread the word and promote Ohio music from all around the state,” according to Koscho.
The name “Aquabear” comes from a drunken camping trip to Indiana that Koscho and Jacobs went on in 2004. “We were camped on the edge of a lake and all started inventing fake creatures which would come in the night and take our food and belongings, and an 'Aquabear' was mentioned,” said Koscho. He liked the imagery and uniqueness of the name and tacked it onto their project, forming the Aquabear Legion.
For over a decade now, Aquabear Legion has been successful in their efforts as they have “put out 11 compilations, run the website, have had 9 County Fairs and put on lots of shows, events and other projects to help spread the word” Koscho says. “We just put out a double LP vinyl compilation (Aquabear Legion Volume 5) that features 24 bands from Ohio.”
All of the work done by Aquabear Legion is done by volunteers and coordinated by Koscho and Jacobs for the sake of independent music. “I think supporting independent music in today's world is very important. There is so much music and art available out there at the click of a mouse,” Koscho says. “ I also think that, on a local level, supporting local art, whether it is seeing a band at the local bar or coffee shop or supporting a local visual artist or non-profit, is just as important to creating and maintaining a vibrant community for everyone as supporting local businesses and local food and farmers.”
The County Fair started in 2007, and is meant to celebrate all the bands Aquabear collaborates with. “The goal is just to get people to come watch Ohio music and enjoy the creativity in this state, and also to throw a fun weekend in Athens” Koscho says.
The official start is Thursday at the Bat Lounge with Bad Luck, Marina Peterson and SacLunch.
On Friday, Jackie O’s hosts We March, The Kyle Sowashes, Slackluster and Palestras.
Saturday starts at Haffa’s Records with the NOBROW.sound_series. This new addition to the County Fair is an experimental concert series started by friend of Aquabear and Athens musician Aaron Butler. This event features Weedghost, Pete Fosco and Tim Feeney. The music continues Saturday night at Casa Cantina with the Blam Blams, The Bygones, Supernobody and Water Witches.
Sunday at the Hen House you can see Dead Hand of Man, Unmonumental, Sardukar and Dead Winds of Summer.
Come on out and support Aquabear Legion, 18 different Ohio bands, and each of the Athens venues that will be hosting these awesome bands. Read ACRN's feature story on Aquabear Legion here.
