Venus Mission
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Venus Mission

Band Rock Folk

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This band has not uploaded any videos

Music

The best kept secret in music

Press


"Cincinnati City Beat"

2-7-02 CityBeat, by Mike Breen Venus Envy

Folksy Pop/Rock group Venus Mission will host a CD release party for their debut album, Midwestern Soul, on Sunday at the 20th Century Theater in Oakley. The 7 p.m. show is free with a CD purchase and a pre-show dinner is available for those making pre-paid reservations (call 513-368-9832 for information). Openers for the night are Dave Purcell, Messerly & Ewing, Stephanie Shull and Bert Herrlinger. Ric Hordinski (who produced the album), Steve Schmidt, Greg Mahan and Josh Seurkamp will join the band on-stage. Venus Mission is fronted by Andrea Rosenthal (formerly of the acoustic band, The Dowlands) whose rich, majestic voice is a focal point of Midwestern Soul. The rest of the group -- guitarist Jeff Johnson, bassist Dave Ramos and drummer Chris Zerges, plus guest pianist Schmidt -- does an exemplary job of creating the luxurious, textural sounds, with which Hordinski once again works his spacious production magic. Fans of Sarah McLachlan or Over The Rhine will find a kindred soul in Venus Mission, with their soaring hooks and lush yet intimate soundscapes. Other standout features of the record include Rosenthal's visceral, poetic lyrics and the extraordinary, artistic CD packaging.
- Mike Breen


"Cincinnati Post"

2-7-02 Cincinnati Post, by Rick Bird Venus Mission:

Folk rock group Venus Mission holds a CD release party 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the 20th Century, Oakley Square ($5) introducing its fine orchestral-sounding collection of original tunes, ''Midwestern Soul.'' Fronted by singer-songwriter Andrea Rosenthal, the disc shows off her classicly-trained voice, as the former May Festival Chorus member clearly enjoys dabbling in the pop arts. The al bum is produced by Ric Hordinski who lends his searing ambient guitar work to many tracks. ''There is a folk storytelling element to the songs,'' Ms. Rosenthal said. ''But I made it clear to Rich I wanted this record to end up in the rock slot. Ms. Rosenthal fronted the folk group The Dowlands in the late '90s and she has moved on to a more intense pop-rock sound. Best of all is her writing, featuring some soul-searching adult rock relationship songs. ''A lot of the songs are about turbulence in that 30-something era when you are sort of fumbling toward your sense of identity,'' she said. ''I tell people they're grown up parables. 'It's not the kind of love I learned in storybooks' (quoting her own lyrics). That's sort of what the whole album is about. This doesn't look quite like what I thought life would look (like), but it's OK.''

- Rick Bird


Discography

"Midwestern Soul" released Feb 2002

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

Venus Mission, a Cincinnati-based orchestral pop five-piece, have been nominated for three 2003 Cincinnati Enquirer Cammy Awards, were named by City Beat as having one of the top local releases of 2002, and were selected in 2002 as Top-20 finalists in the WOXY 97-Exposure contest, beating out over 100 other acts for radio airplay at Miami University.

Venus Mission’s debut CD, “Midwestern Soul,” was released in February of 2002 at a restored art-deco 20th Century Theatre. The CD quickly garnered critical acclaim from both the mainstream and alternative press in the region, and found them in rotation on 89.7 WNKU radio at Northern Kentucky University.

Midwestern Soul’s 11 tracks were engineered and produced by Ric Hordinski who produced David Wilcox’s new release “Into the Mystery” as well as an earlier Wilcox album, “Turning Point.” Throughout the 1990’s, Hordinkski was the guitar genius behind the critically acclaimed band Over the Rhine (IRS, Virgin). Hordinski, who has been likened to Dan Lanois stylistically, also produces for Phil Keaggy and other national acts. His work for Venus Mission was a rare “local” effort and landed him the “Producer of the Year” award at the 2002 Cincinnati Enquirer Cammy Awards.

Venus Mission is the brainchild of vocalist/composer/pianist Andrea Rosenthal. She has been a collegiate actress, voice-over artist, attorney, non-profit development officer and is currently a concert organizer and community activist.

In summer 2002, Venus Mission opened for British folk-rock legends Lindisfarne. They headline the premier venues for original music in the Cincinnati area, lend their name to many high-profile fundraisers, and stage a thrice summerly outdoor summer music festival in Clifton. Autumn 2002 events included an appearance at National Public Radio’s national conference and showcasing at the newly minted Midpoint Music Festival.