Bikers, booze, and babes. Ohio's biggest motorcycle gathering, Ohio Bike Week, concluded last weekend with what started as a favorable overcast of hit or miss sprinkles, ended with soppy puddles beneath our feet. Despite Mother Nature damping NEO, Olathia were back for their second straight year on the main stage, playing a brutal one hour set before Pop Evil. A few new songs were played, "Victory" being my fresh favorite of mine, hinting these guys are ready to hit the studio soon. And by soon, this September to be exact.

Now my thoughts on the show. I'm usually an optimistic guy. Anyone who knows me, knows I turn a blind eye on the negatives and focus on shit that's important, but I was a little frustrated on the organization for when these local bands come through to support the headliners. The way it is setup, they have a section fenced off in front of the stage which is reserved for the VIPs when nationals play. So when the local acts go on, this section is pretty bare and beyond the fenced area, you begin to see the crowd build up from there. My big issue, security will NOT open this up for fans to gather around the stage. While I was on stage shooting, you're staring into a void of emptiness with a crowd beyond your grasp of interaction. I totally get why there's a VIP section and it makes sense. They have to pay those national headliners each night, but frankly, the VIP section was too large and by the time Pop Evil went on, not even 3/4 was filled (perhaps the rainy weather was a factor). I'm not dogging on OBW at all. It's a kick ass event. I wish there was something else to permit fans to gather for general admission access and still provide great lineups each night. Live music is such a fun experience when everything seems larger than life, right in front of your eyes.

With that, my ongoing rambling is done. Olathia were amazing as usual! A lot of great feedback was received, even an insider from Rock on the Range wanting them next year. I came away with some great shots to allure away the negatives that afternoon.