Written by Mackenzie Manley, Content Specialist, Downtown Main Library
This post is part of a larger series that spotlights local music acts performing at the Meet Me at Main Music Festival. Check out our website for more interviews with performers leading up to Saturday, July 11.
Nine music acts will take over the Downtown Main Library on Saturday, July 11 for the inaugural Meet Me at Main Music Festival: a family-friendly, multi-stage, multi-genre showcase of local music, including two after-hours performances. The event coincides with the second anniversary of Downtown Main Library’s reopening. See the full lineup and read more artist interviews.
Catching up with pity xerox
We caught up with Patrick Zopff of pity xerox ahead of the fest to chat about his lyric-writing process, the collaborative spirit of music making, and the Library’s role in Cincinnati’s live music scene.
A bedroom pop outfit weaving elements of techno, acoustic guitar, resonant storytelling, and twinkly synth, pity xerox’s debut album connect the dots released in May 2025. Along with Patrick, pity xerox is comprised is Amanda Eldridge, Matthew Wallenhorst, Grace Eddy, Julian Vanasse, and Louis Martini.
The interview is edited for brevity and clarity.
Mackenzie: To you, what part does the Library play in the larger local music scene? What does it mean to you to be able to play music in a public space like the Library?
Patrick: The majority of Cincinnati's local artists rely on the Library's MakerSpace to create promotional material that would otherwise be rather difficult to source. Additionally, the music made available to the public by the library in the form of CD is massively influential. I was shocked and felt very honored when some musical projects of mine from the last ten years were immortalized on the Social Stairs. Bringing my music to the Library this summer feels like an opportunity to express gratitude for all the times I was empowered to make something new.
Mackenzie: How do you see music as a collaborative effort?
Patrick: Music has an enormous history as a communal activity, and I think that we live in a rare time when music feasibly can be made alone... This was nearly the case for connect the dots. As I made progress with the writing and recording process, it occurred to me that the art would be better with some involvement from my community. I reached out to several people; some to add literally to the recordings, and some to help the album in different ways. Ultimately, I think the music wouldn't be nearly as compelling without these pivotal contributions. My favorite collaborator in the process of making connect the dots would have to be my three-year-old nephew, Andrew, who starred in the music video for the song “golden bough.”
Mackenzie: Can you tell me a bit about the writing process, both in the musical and lyrical sense?
Patrick: There's a lot to unpack there. The songs came very unconsciously, during a time when I made a promise to myself to record every day. The stories that came out, lyrically, were clearly reflective of my own emotions at the time, dealing with some grief, aimlessness, optimism, and existential feelings. On my computer I was looking through a folder of converted VHS videos from my childhood. Occasionally, I felt inspired to include audio from those home movies in songs. There's audio from my little sister’s baptism in there, I think from 1998. In a way, I was able to preserve some of those sounds by repurposing them in my music, and the audio from my childhood can now have a new life in the mind of anyone who listens to the album.
Mackenzie: What do you hope to convey through your music?
Patrick: Overall, I want the project pity xerox to be a vehicle for my friends and I to grow as individuals within a team and share discoveries and feelings. My hope is that sharing discoveries and feelings eventually leads our listeners to feeling more connected to something greater than just themselves.
pity xerox will open the festival’s afternoon lineup on Saturday, July 11 at 2 p.m. on the Social Stairs. Patrick says they will play a special set of arrangements with each member on a slightly different instrument than they’re accustomed to.
“My bandmates are my favorite musicians I've ever heard, and to play alongside them is the greatest blessing I could ever ask for,” says Patrick.
Meet Me at Main Music Festival is made possible by The Johnson Foundation and The Thomas W. Jones Fund of the Library Foundation.
Mackenzie Manley is currently reading “Room to Dream” by David Lynch and Kristine McKenna.
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