First Record, Art & Music Fair set for Saturday in Fairfield

Eric DePrato and his sons, Jack and Mitchell, who run Three Feather Records, were hooked when Plaid Room Records put on a record fair last year at Rhinegeist Brewery.

DePrato and sons had a booth at the fair, and “it was a blast,” Eric DePrato said.

“It was a great crowd,” he said. “I was surprised at how many albums we sold; we had to come back (to Fairfield) because we ran out of albums.”

This year, using Plaid Room’s festival as a model, they are planning their inaugural Record, Art & Music Fair from 2 to 8 p.m. on Saturday at the Oscar Event Station at Jungle Jim’s. (It’s the building behind the grocery store with a big snake on the building).

The idea started out small, said DePrato, with just a simple record fair featuring a few record stores.

“Then we thought, ‘You know what, why don’t we include other artists and recording studios and record labels?’” he said. “A couple of my sons’ friends are artists, and we thought we’d include them. That’s what it turned into.”

After looking at a few locations, they were able to get the Oscar Event Station on Ohio 4 in Fairfield, which also has an entrance off North Gilmore Road at the back of the property. The fair will be mostly inside, but there will be some outside activities and a few bands, including a jazz band and multiple rock bands.

“Our main goal is to get other businesses some business, to raise awareness of them,” said DePrato.

While he will see some people staying for most, if not the entirety, of the festival, most will of the patrons will likely be there for about an hour or two to check out the record stores, the labels, and recording studios. And there will be some networking among the participants.

He’s not sure of the crowd size the inaugural event could draw, but the event’s other goal is to raise some money for Joe Nuxhall Miracle League Fields.

Tyler Bradshaw, executive director of The Nuxhall Foundation, which oversees the Nuxhall legacy projects, said many events and organizations had backed The Nuxhall Foundation and its projects, and it is always humbling.

“The Greater Cincinnati community, particularly awesome small businesses like Three Feather Records, have bolstered and strengthened our mission in so many ways,” Bradshaw said.

“Their loyalty to Joe, his legacy, and the Nuxhall family inspire us to take big swings for the special needs athletes that we serve at The Joe Nuxhall Miracle League Fields. We live each day with an attitude of gratitude because of the incredible support we receive from events like these.”


RECORD, ART & MUSIC FAIR

What: The inaugural Record, Art & Music Fair

Where: Oscar Event Station at Jungle Jim’s International Market on Ohio 4 in Fairfield (it’s the building behind the grocery store with a big snake on the building).

When: 2 to 8 p.m. on Saturday

Cost: Free entry

About the Author