Travis Brandner Photography

On paper, it just shouldn’t work. “Dawg Yawp plays garage-y folk rock augmented by sitar and electronics.” Huh? Locals know what’s up, though. Barely a year after playing their first show, Dawg Yawp have become one of the best-loved and brightest stars in the Cincinnati music scene. Their music has been featured by the likes of NPR Music and Consequence of Sound, and they’ve graced the stages of both Midpoint Music Festival and MusicNOW at Cincinnati Music Hall. Armed with songs from their stellar EP Two Hearted, as well as their driving new single “Can’t Think,” they’re sure to be a knockout start to the second day of Bunbury.

The pair have known each other since high school, and spent time at Berklee College of Music in Boston before heading to Colorado. Randall toured nationally with Sonnymoon, but eventually, the they both decided to relocate to their hometown. They played their first shows as Dawg Yawp at Taste of Belgium in Corryville in the winter of 2014, and soon started gigging regularly at MOTR Pub, the Chameleon in Northside, and the Southgate House Revival. Two Hearted was released in May, recorded and produced by local legend Rob Fetters of Raisins/Bears/psychodots fame. This March, the duo took on a weekly residency at The Comet in Northside, where they were joined by the likes of Jennifer Simone, ADM, Pop Empire, Baoku, The Tillers, and more. Hot on the heels of the residency, they were WNKU’S April Artist of the Month, and went on a tour of the Upper Midwest. Needless to say, things are going quickly for the duo.

Their perfectly-scheduled Bunbury debut just seems like another part of that momentum. They’ll be playing the gorgeous CVG River Stage, with the mighty Ohio rolling behind them and a well-rested audience early in the day. When I spoke with them this week, the pair described themselves as “ecstatic” for the opportunity. “This is definitely the biggest stage we've played,” said Randall, “and we'll see if it is our biggest audience!” Asked if they had any tricks up their sleeve: “Always.”

Dawg Yawp plays at 1:30 on Saturday, June 4th at the CVG River Stage