Dayton Hosts the Ultimate Guided by Voices Fan Festival

As a big fan of Guided by Voices and Robert Pollard’s many projects, I look forward to the big, annual(ish) fan festival called Heedfest where people from across the country and around the world come to Dayton, Ohio to celebrate all things GBV in the (not-so-mythological) town where it all started. This year, I was especially excited because in addition to lots of amazing music, Heedfest also brought a lot of attention to several great Dayton businesses. Here are the Dayton bars and venues that made GBV fans feel right at home.

Barrel House

Heedfest (high) kicked things off at Barrel House, where Pollard fans came together to enjoy all-Bob, all-vinyl DJ sets and an abundance of craft beer. For a crowd that has historically sold out bars’ entire stock of Miller Lite in a matter of hours, the craft beer was still a perfect pairing. Fans filled up Barrel House, including both the front and back patios, and it was such a perfect evening all around.

Brightside Music & Event Venue

Right after doors opened, people started getting situated to watch Ex Pilots open for GBV at Brightside

The main event was a sold out Guided by Voices concert at The Brightside. The venue was absolutely perfect for the show (plenty of room for mic swinging) and offered a streamlined drink menu to help keep all of the lines moving quickly.

Robert Pollard’s portrait hanging at The Brightside

They even had the patio open with a bar and food trucks – not to mention an entire Miller Lite truck backed in and ready. Genius!

Yellow Cab Tavern & Pizza Bandit

Heedfest features GBV cover bands from across the country (and I admire them so much for being able to play Bob Pollard’s songs right in front of him – that’s so amazing to me!). This year, all of the cover bands played at Yellow Cab Tavern. Yellow Cab fully understood the assignment, offering special cocktails and buckets of Miller Lite, and Pizza Bandit created Bob’s XXX Triple Hot pizza special.

I tried the Teenage FBI – a yummy and very pretty tequila cocktail.

Wings Sports Bar & Grille

Miller Lite bucket at Wings for Heedfest 2015

No article about Heedfest would be complete without mentioning Wings in Vandalia. Heedfest used to be much more centered in the Vandalia area and Wings was where a lot of it took place each year – their enormous patio in particular. The 2019 tornados really did a number on this place and it’s so great to see it rebound like it has.

Vintage Heedfest vibes (2015) at the Polish Picnic Grounds

Heedfest XII was such a special event for me – I have so many great memories from Heedfests over the years. And I’ve always felt lucky that I get to see people from all over the world fall in love with Dayton bars, restaurants, and venues while they’re here. Thanks to everyone who drove or flew in from elsewhere and took the time to explore Dayton’s local businesses. Hope to see you for Heedfest XIII!