Crib Notes

Who are you?
Owen Ashworth, the person from Casiotone for the Painfully Alone.

Describe yourself in three words.
Really cool guy.

Who — dead or alive — would you most like to meet?
My great great grandfather, George Berg.  Legend has it he killed a bear with his bare hands.  It was self defense!

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
I’m not much of a slapper, to be honest.

What song do you wish you had written?
“He Stopped Loving Her Today” by Bobby Braddock and Curly Putman.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Elvis Stojko, world class figure skater

LP, CD or MP3?
Nothing ever sounds as good as it does in my head.

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
The popularity of my music.  I try and I try.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
Penny loafers all of a sudden.  Really, dudes?

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
The city of Atlanta. Give yourselves a hand, people!

Casiotone for the Painfully alone plays 529 with Cryptacize and CCIVORY on Tues., June 30. $7. 9 p.m.

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Interesting things happen when Franz Ferdinand and producer Dan Carey get in the studio together. Deciding that Tonight: Franz Ferdinand wasn’t enough, the guys re-mixed most of the songs. The product is the manic Blood: Franz Ferdinand (Domino), released earlier this month. Blood takes the thumping reggae of Tonight, adds heavy bass, pulls it apart so it’s almost gummy, and throws in some more synthesizers. The outcome is three-times as fun and perfect for the dance floor. “Die on the Dance Floor” is the first attention-grabber. It starts, bouncing with some serious 80’s influence, but darkens when the spacious bass unifies the rhythm. “Katherine Hit Me,” which only plays off the title of Tonight’s “Katherine Kiss Me,” sounds like a bunch of musically inclined toddlers with pots and pans running around in the kitchen. It’s iterative and addictive. The highlight of the record is “Be Afraid,” a rework of “Dream Again.” It echoes like a dripping faucet in an empty room, leaving the backing chimes to carry the music. Though not stronger than Tonight, it’s just as frenetically electronic, excessive and indulgent. 4 out of 5 stars.

— Azia Squire

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Sonic Youth’s umpteenth studio album The Eternal hit the streets yesterday via Matador Records, and it is a monster. The gorgeous John Fahey painting on the album’s cover sums it up in one circular and rhythmic motion.

The Eternal is a swirling mass of stark, guitar textures where persistent, avant-garde movements lure the senses into a familiar place before opening up to reveal the truly bombastic nature of the album.

Over the last decade albums such as NYC Ghosts and Flowers, Sonic Nurse and Rather Ripped have upheld the group’s legacy, but The Eternal is easily Sonic Youth’s strongest record in years. “Sacred Trickster,” “Anti-Orgasm,” “Antenna” and “No Way” evoke the energy, the darkness and the noise wrought with such early staples as “EVOL,” “Sister” and “Daydream Nation.” But what sets The Eternal apart is a uniformly brilliant batch of songs that find the band thrashing through chiming melodies, chops, feedback and drones, butted against the vocal back-and-forth of Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore who come across sharper and more energetic than they have sounded in quite some time. “Sacred Trickster” sets the machine in motion with urgency and an affinity for the noir side of bleak art for the sake of rock and roll, which is what Sonic Youth has always done best. More on this in the weeks to come.

“Sacred Trickster” mp3

Sonic Youth plays the Variety Playhouse with the Entrance Band on Mon., July 13. $25. 8p.m.

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Athens-based Appalachian trance metal guitarist/improv artist Killick’s (Erik Hinds) forthcoming full-length Exsanguinette (sic), features an impressive lineup of like-minded players accompanying his guitar playing, including Brann Dailor of Mastodon (drums), Liz Allbee (trumpet) and Larry Ochs (of Rova Saxophone Quartet) on sax. For lack of a better term, the music is insane. The CD will be released in a limited press of only 1,000 copies, featuring artwork by Watson Atkinson, photos by Rinne Allen and an old-school trash metal cassette demo J-card style insert. The recording is due out in June on Killick’s Solponticello label.

The idea for the project came about shortly after Killick suffered through a nasty bout of internal bleeding that left him hospitalized for several days, and greatly influenced this forthcoming release. According to Killick, “The music explores the idea of bleeding as purging, change, and renewal.

“Bloodletting” excerpt mp3

Chad Radford: What happened to you in June?

Killick: “I woke up one day feeling “lazy” for lack of a better word. My physical state deteriorated rapidly, and by 6 p.m., I was in the hospital where I stayed for five days. I had a bleeding Duodenal ulcer … silent, painless caused by a bacteria called H. Pylori. I could have gotten the bacteria anywhere at any point from when I was born until right up to then. I lost over half my blood. It’s thought that many, many people around the world have H. Pylori, though it typically doesn’t cause any problems. Having Celiac disease may make me more susceptible than the average person. Celiac disease is a lifelong intolerance to the gluten protein Gliadin, found in wheat, barley and rye plus there’s a closely related protein in oats. They are poison to my body. The trick is avoiding not only the obvious foods, but almost all processed food has small amounts in it, which is too much for me. I’ve been gluten-free for four years. … I’m used to it. The social dimension is harder on other people than it is me. People feel bad that I can’t eat what they prepare. I also can’t drink alcohol or eat spicy foods, or tomatoes or oranges or almonds, or refined sugar, or caffeine. I also can’t take any aspirin or Ibuprofen or anything like it. I tell people I’ll make up for it in another life.

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It’s true! The Black Lips and the one and only GZA have teamed up on a version of the Black Lips’ song “The Drop I Hold,” which will appear on a forthcoming iTunes EP later this year.

“The Drop I Hold”

(Photo courtesy Dickies)

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Who are you?
Rhys Webb, the Horrors.

Describe yourself in three words.
No-thank-you.

Who — dead or alive — would you most like to meet?
Joe Meek.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
You!

What song do you wish you had written?
“Johnny Remember Me” - John Leyton.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Presley.

LP, CD or MP3?
LP always.

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
The French Anarchist look circa 1789.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
Kill all hippies.

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
Genesis P. Orridge.

The Horrors play Lenny’s with the Kills and Magic Wands on Mon., April 27. $15. 9 p.m. Lenny’s Bar, 486 Decatur St. 404-577-7721.

(Photo courtesy of the Horrors)

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The Coathangers - Stop Stomp Stompin from Extra Zero Media on Vimeo.

Earlier this week the Coathangers unveiled the video for “Stop Stomp Stompin’” from their sophomore album, Scramble on Suicide Squeeze Records.

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Who are you?
We are Peelander-Z from Z area of Peelander-Planet. We eat smiles that’s why we make you smile at our show.

Describe yourself in three words.
Yellow, Red & Green.

What song do you wish you had written?
Thriller of MJ!!!!! Also that choreography!!!!!! We want to make this song’s PV of Peelander-Z.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Daughter of Elvis. Hahaha~~~
Actually, we have a secret charactor on this tour. His name is Peelander-Elvis. He is a cool-Tokyo-City-Cowboy!!!! Don’t miss him and kiss him at the show.

LP, CD or MP3?
No!!! Cassette tape is the best!!!! I’m writing songs with a cassette recorder!!!!

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Crippled Black Phoenix is the brainchild of frontman Justin Greaves (Electric Wizard / Iron Monkey / Teeth Of Lions Rule Devine).

The group’s latest offering, 200 Tons of Bad Luck is a collection of songs that were crafted at Geoff Barrow of Portishead’s studio, and released via Barrow’s Invada Records imprint. The band for this go-around is made up of Joe Volk, Dominic Aitchison (Mogwai), Kostas Panagiotou (Pantheist) & Charlotte Nicholls. Joining the group on all live dates will be Joe Allen and John Langley of Saturation Point.

Chad Radford:  Tell me about the line-up that you’re bringing with you on the road for this tour.
Justin Greaves:  Well, we have the usual line-up we take on tour. It’ll be consisting of guitars, bass, cello, drums, moog/synths etc, we got a couple of new players for this one also, Mark Ophidian and Baz Barrett, Baz just jumped on at the last minute so the tour has been one long rehearsal for him! Amazing really.

Can you tell me about some of the ideas that went into 200 Tons of Bad Luck? I don’t think of it as a concept album per say, but are some recurring, though vague themes, as well as some very evocative imagery running through the record.
That’s right, it’s not a concept album in the usual way, but the themes run throughout and there’s very definite reasons why the songs are on there, but the 200 Tons album is a compilation of songs from the two (2) full albums, it’s a record business compromise and it just don’t make sense to me. To get the full effect I think people need to hear The Resurrecionists & Night Raider albums. It may take some patience but the effect will be worth it. So, all the imagery will make so much more sense too, there’s things that are quite subliminal and some things that are blatantly obvious, it’s really up to the listener to take what they will from the prompts.

“Rise Up and Fight” mp3

Crippled Black Phoenix and Ascent Everest play 529 tonight (Sat., April 18). $8. 9 p.m.

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Nashville-based film maker Matthew Robison’s (Silver Jew) much ballyhooed, but yet to be released Atlanta rock documentary We Fun premieres at the Atlanta Film Festival this Saturday night (April 18.)

The film is showing on screen no. 4 at the Midtown Art Cinema on Sat., April 18 and again at 2:05 p.m. on screen no. 6 on  Wed., April 22.

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Who are you?
Mike Perkins from Pistolero.

Describe yourself in three words.
Adult. White. Male

Who — dead or alive — would you most like to meet?
Phillip K Dick. Sci Fi Author, 60′S -80′S. This guy had some of the most revolutionary ideas about human perception and the flow of time that I have ever read/thought about. He was this south California nut who just eked out a living writing books, doing meth and contemplating God.
**Don’t do meth, meth is bad for you.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
I once got canned from a job  because my boss threw me under the bus to save his own paycheck. Him I’d like to thoughtfully humiliate.

What song do you wish you had written?
Blue Bayou by Roy Orbison. The ultimate song of love and devotion, plus you just can’t beat Roy’s voice.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Presley! People in Japan don’t dress up and sing like Costello.

LP, CD or MP3?
No MP3 player. No record player. My car has a CD player but I like public radio a lot. Terry Gross is the shit.

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
It only takes a moment to be polite.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
I would like to see people stop taking the little plastic bags at grocery stores/bodegas/liquor spots. I was behind a woman in line today that took a plastic bag for a gift card she was buying. Just carry that shit in your hand…or the giant purse that swinging from your shoulder.

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
The ladies of Battletar Galatica. Starbuck, Caprica 6 and Boomer!

“Yellow House” mp3

Pistolero plays a CD release show for their brand new full-length, Warface at The Star Bar on Sat., April 25 with North Elementary and  Thee Crucials $8. 9 p.m.

(Photo courtesy Pistolero)

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This Friday night, April 17, Atlanta bands Sick Figures and All Night Drug Prowling Wolves will celebrate the release of a brand new split 7-inch single on Stickfigure Records at 529 in the East Atlanta Village, across the street from the Flat Iron.

Gainesville, Fla.’s country punk/rockabilly ensemble Whiskey & Co. return to Atlanta for the first time in several years to headline the show.

Doors open at 9 p.m.

Sick Figures get things started at around 10 p.m. All Night Drug Prowling Wolves go on around 11 p.m. and Whiskey & Co. will take the stage around midnight or sometime shortly thereafter to close out the night.

Cover is $7. 529 is located at 529 Flat Shoals Rd. 404-228-6769.

“Maybe Tomorrow” mp3 from All Night Drug Prowling Wolves’ side of the 7-inch.

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For today’s Roll Call we call out Elijah Jones from The Constellations.

Describe yourself in 3 words?
Anti American Idol (but pro Velvet Teddy Bear).

Who — dead or alive — would you most like to meet?
George W. Bush so I could give him a purple nurple, or at least a wet willy.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Pete Wentz, and any man, not living in Alaska, who wears furry boots.

What song do you wish you had written?
“I Don’t Want to Grow Up” by Tom Waits.

Elvis Costello, or Elvis Presley?
In a fight to the death, the King obviously, he knows Kung Fu.

LP, CD or MP3?
Cassettes don’t scratch or skip, and you can’t illegally download them.

If you could start one trend what would it be?
Bring back the bar room sing-a-long, but not “O Danny Boy” more like “Love in Your Mouth” by Kilo Ali.

If you could end one trend what would it be?
The recession.

With whom would you like to play spin the bottle with?
Penelope Cruz, Scarlett Johansson, and that chick from Hanson. MmmBop.

“Felicia mp3″

The Constellations play Sloppy Seconds at MJQ/the Drunken Unicorn on Sat., April 11. Free. 9 p.m. 736 Ponce de leon Ave.

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For today’s Roll Call we call out Tony Dekker from Ontario’s Great Lake Swimmers.

Who are you?
Tony Dekker from Great Lake Swimmers.

Describe yourself in three words.
Big huge nerd.

Who - dead or alive - would you most like to meet?
Leonard Cohen.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Nobody. I don’t slap people in their faces.

What song do you wish you had written?
“Worried Shoes” by Daniel Johnston.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Elvis Presley, if forced to choose.

LP, CD or MP3?
LP with the MP3’s in the LP.

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
Being nice.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
Distressed jeans.

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
The Super Friends.

“The Chorus in the Underground” mp3

Great Lake Swimmers play the Earl on Fri., April 10 with Kate Maki and Magic Apron. $12. 8 p.m. The Earl, 488 Flat Shoals Rd. 404-522-3950.

(Photo courtesy Great Lake Swimmers)

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“See Saw” mp3

“Always Wanting More” mp3

Jay Reatard plays a free show at Emory Performing Arts Studio, 1804 N. Decatur Rd. 8 p.m. Fri., April 10. On Sat., April 11 Jay Reatard plays at Lenny’s with Gentleman Jesse, GG King and the Stolen Hearts. 9 p.m. $10. 486 Decatur St. 404-577-7721.

Chad Radford: Your MySpace headline says “New record almost finished.” Do you have a name for it yet?
Jay Reatard: Yeah, it’s Watch Me Fall. Pretty positive title … unless I change my mind in the next three days, that’s what it’s going to be called.

Is the line-up on the record the same one that you’ve been working with for a while?
Yeah, on the recording itself the majority of the songs are just acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass and drums. And then on a few other songs there is Farfisa and a little bit of piano and on two other songs there’s some cello and a couple mandolin parts. I’m not really going into like R.E.M. and “Losing My Religion” territory just yet, but I wanted to use some different kind of non typical rock instruments in the context of a rock song.

Is it going to be in the same kind of tone as Blood Visions?
No, it’s a drastically different record. On the surface it might appear really different. The content of the songs and the general aesthetics of the songs are the same, but the way that they are delivered is different. The songs are a lot longer, there are only 12 songs and I didn’t even know it until I threw it on the computer to start sequencing it and I was like ‘wow man, there are quite a few songs on here that are like four minutes long,’ which is twice the length of most of my songs, but there are still a lot of songs on there that are really short. I’d like to say that in theory it’s a punk record but it’s really not. It’s kind of like a dark pop record I think.

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For today’s Roll Call we call out Jefrey Siler of Clemente.

Who are you?
Siler, Jefrey. Proud owner-Unibrow.

Describe yourself in three words.
Sox, Sandles, Sweats.

Who — dead or alive — would you most like to meet?
Richard Simmons, he meant so much to my Grandmother when he was alive.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Anyone from the VH1 network.

What song do you wish you had written?
Anything by Peter Cetera so that I could call my publisher and ask to be taken off the TJ Maxx in-store mix and allow Jefrey Siler to shop fer tester colognes in peace.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Costello. When everyone else was growing their hair out ol’ Declan grew his forehead out. That’s pretty punk.

LP, CD or MP3?
You can put a song on a piece of toast fer all I care, if it’s got heart it’ll come thru, otherwise it’s soggy anywayz.

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
Wholewheat 7″s.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
I can’t say it’s a trend but my buddy’s wife has begun to pluck his eye brows a bit over-zealouly. Since then he constantly looks surprised,

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
Steve Martin trapped inside Penelope Cruz’ body, I feel dizzy just thinking about it.

“History’s March” mp3

Jefrey Siler plays the Earl with Maria Taylor and the Whispertown 2000. Wed., April 8. $10. 8:30 p.m. The Earl, 488 Flat Shoals Ave. 404-522-3950.

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Austin, Texas, garage-punk quartet the Strange Boys craft a primitive, lo-fi rock and roll sound that’s both dirty and addictive. At its most predictable moments, the group comes across like a Lone Star state little brother to the Black Lips. But when they’re on, they’re on. Their In the Red Records debut, The Strange Boys and Girls Club, unleashes a psychedelic post-punk jam that’s part Texas psychedelia and part slow, Southern post-punk. Carnivores and the N.E.C. also perform.

$8. 8:30 p.m. The Earl, 488 Flat Shoals Ave. 404-522-3950.

Before their proper show at the Earl the Strange Boys are playing a free acoustic show across the street at Reactionary Records at 6:30 p.m.

“Heard You Want to Beat Me Up” mp3

(Photo courtesy of In the Red Records)

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The 4th Ward Afro-Klezmer Orchestra plays exactly what the name promises, a merger of Western and African rhythms and Klezmer-influenced song styles laid down by some of the best jazz hands in Atlanta.

Under the direction of composer/trumpeter Roger Ruzow, the 10-piece ensemble barrels through original arrangements of traditional and exotic sounds.

With so many players, 4WAKO features members of dozens of acts, including Noot d’Noot, Cadillac Jones and Gold Sparkle Band.

The group features Colin Bragg (guitar), Chris Case (keyboard), Ben Davis (tenor sax), Jeff Crompton (alto sax / clarinet), Ben Gettys (bass), Bill Nittler (baritone sax / clarinet), Keith Leslie (drums), Blake Williams (trombone) and Roger Ruzow (trumpet).

4WAKO plays two sets at 529 tonight. $7. 10 p.m. 529 Flat Shoals Rd. 404-228-6769.

“Greater Lagos Wednesday Night Talmud Meeting”

(Photo by Stevie Brown)

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It’s official, both the Black Lips and Deerhunter are playing at 529 Thurs., April 2. Doors open at 9 p.m. Cover is $20. The show is a benefit for Bobby Ubangi, a.k.a. B Jay Womack, who was diagnosed last year with stage IV small cell lung cancer.

There will be no pre-sale tickets for this show. Admission will be granted on a first come, first serve basis. Barreracudas open the show.

Black Lips “Short Fuse”

Black Lips “Starting over”

Black Lips “I’ll Be With You”

(more…)

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Stax legend, Booker T. Jones (of Booker T and the MGs fame) will be at Criminal Records for a meet and greet/signing from 6:45pm-7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1 prior to his show at the Variety Playhouse, where he will be appearing with the Drive-by Truckers.

Booker T fans will be able to pre-order his new CD, Potato Hole, which features the Drive-by Truckers as his back-up band (as well as Neil Young on several tracks). Those who pre-order on Wednesday will receive a signed copy of the CD which is slated for release on May 19.

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