Crib Notes

As reported by Crib Notes earlier this week long-standing local musician, DJ and promoter Johnny “Ether” Laubach passed away last Friday due to blunt force trauma to the head. According to an e-mail sent out by his friend and roommate Joe Cruz, “The fall was caused by weakness due to a tear in his stomach… he passed peacefully.”

The Laubach family cremated Johnny per his request and there will not be a traditional funeral.

A memorial will be held on Mon., Dec. 8 at The Albert located in Inman Park at 3:30 p.m.

Anyone who is interested in speaking or performing should contact Cruz. Johnny’s parents and sister will be in attendance, along with a minister.

Cruz encourages all who attend to bring instruments, photos, flowers, poems, Ether’s music and any other appropriate materials.

A food buffet will be supplied and there will be a cash bar.

The Albert is located at 918 Austin Ave. (30307).
(404) 872-4990

(Photo courtesy of Johnny Ether’s Myspace page)

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For today’s Roll Call we call out Philip Frobos of Carnivores.

Who are you?
I’m Philip Frobos, and I play bass and sing for CARNIVORES (used to be Chainestereo). I also play bass with those Untied States kids. I like dead culture, cheese grits and David Bowie.

Describe yourself in three words.
Rambunctious, Paranoid, Blue

Who — dead or alive — would most you like to meet?
I’d like to roll with Nancy Sinatra back in her heyday, I wanna be her Lee Hazelwood. That record Nancy & Lee destroys me, if you can find it on the internet you should get the bonus track that doesn’t come on the LP called “Arkansas Coal.” I don’t know how they wrote that song, it might as well be an epic, but not like lame epic rock.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Dj Dj Dj Dylan. He wouldn’t get an Oh Snap picture with me. Maybe next week.

What song do you wish you had written?
It’s probably a tie between ELO’s “Showdown” and Jobim’s “The Girl from Ipanema.”

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Costello.

LP, CD or MP3?
My favorite is LP, since I moved to Atlanta I’ve been building up a decent collection. I like that its a little more engaging, I like to think of records as two parts. Although I do love my morning on Marta with my iPod. It’s a toss up, those new LPs that come with the mp3 download card are brilliant!

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
Bring the word “Rad” back up to its former dynasty in “cool” synonyms. Also bring “Game On” from Wayne’s World back, but then I probably wouldn’t want to say them anymore. How about Swatch?

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
Overly HUGE sunglasses that hide ugly girls’ faces. Those things are as good as beer goggles but you don’t even get to be drunk.

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
Zooey Deschanel. She seems like a pretty rad kid.

“A Crime”

Carnivores plays the Pine Magazine showcase at The Star Bar on Thurs., Dec. 4. Free. 9 p.m.

(Photo courtesy of Philip Frobos)

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On Saturday, March 14th, two titans of song, Elton John and Billy Joel will go head-to-head, song for song, tit-for-tat at Philips Arena for the Face to Face tour.

EJ and BJ will open the show with a series of duets, playing twin pianos and trading vocals. Each artist will then perform a set with their own band. When the smoke clears a grand finale will bring them together again for a closing encore running through hits from their respective catalogs as well as several other rock and roll classics.

“I love touring with Billy. I have the greatest respect for him and we’re such good friends,” Elton said.

“The great thing about performing with Elton is that he is such a good piano player and that makes me have to dig deep to keep up with him, not to mention I’ve got the best seat in the house-only one piano away from Elton John!” said Billy.

Tickets will go on sale Sat. Dec. 6 at 10 a.m. at Ticketmaster, TicketMaster.com, LiveNation.com, the Philips Arena box office or charge by phone at (404) 249-6400.

One ticket will get you a whole seat, but you only need the edge…

And although this isn’t exactly the typical Crib Notes fodder the pairing of EJ and BJ has spawned such a heated debate in the office that we’re opening the floor to our readers. Drop us a line and let us know who you like more and why, and we’ll give the best response two tickets to the King Tut Exhibit at the Atlanta Civic Center.

(Photo of Billy Joel by Myrna Suarez.)
(Photo of Elton John by Deborah Anderson.)

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Creative Loafing was saddened to learn that long-time Atlanta music fixture and one-time Eastside Lounge co-owner Johnny Ether (Johnny Laubach) has passed away.

Details regarding the cause of his death are still not available. A Lunar Magazine thread addresses some vague details concerning the accidental nature of his death, but there aren’t any substantial details to report at this time.

A post from his close friend Joe Cruz states:

Johnny Ether Laubach. Joe Cruz here. I am johnny’s friend and roommate. Thank you all for your well wishes. The Laubach family thanks you all. I have no word on a service yet. I know Johnny requested creamation. Sorry for the delay. We just got word that Johnny died from blunt force trama to the head, a freak accident. We will miss you dearly, Johnny Ether.

All I can say is that I will let you all know when and where the service will be held asap. There will be a gathering at the Albert in Inman park in his honor. Time and day TBD

Laubach was performing music in Atlanta during the city’s so-called “Destroy All Music” era in the early to mid-’80s. He performed in the electro/industrial act PVC Precinct as well as several other like minded groups before he went by the name Johnny Ether. He later emerged onto Atlanta’s drum and bass scene as a musician, DJ and promoter.

Local goth rockers the Changelings even wrote an ethereal number about him, titled “Johnny Ether’s Great Escape.”

More details will be posted on Crib Notes as soon as they become available.

In the meantime e-mails are pouring in offering insight and testimonials about Johnny Ether’s passions as a musician and friend.

Bay area musician Josh Brown writes:

In the mid-90’s Johnny approached me to collaborate with him mixing traditional Indian ragas on Sitar with his digital music… Johnny was a VERY astute student of Indian Classical music. I point this out because Indian Raga is EXTREMELY detailed and almost impossible to learn in the west. Johnny researched, went to performances, studied with my Guru-Ustad Rafi Akbar Zada and talked endlessly with me about this majestic music which he loved so much.

Through his understanding of this difficult music, he was able to really incorporate it into his music which set him above other music makers that used Sitar as a gimmick… I think his understanding and love of Raga really made him stand out…

(Photo courtesy of Johnny Ether’s Myspace.)

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It’s the last Saturday of the month again, which means it’s time for another installment of the Fringe Factory .

Fringe Factory returns to The Highland Inn Ballroom Lounge tonight to present the Reverberation DJs from Houston, Texas.

Come dance off your Thanksgiving leftovers with DJ Psychedelic Sex Panther and DJ Andrew Lee as well as your regular Fringe Factory hosts DJs Suzy Q and Vikki V for an ATL meets Tejas dance party extravaganza.

Local band electro/experimental rockers Recompas (featuring Travis Thatcher from Judi Chicago) will be performing as well.

Cover is $7 and things will get started around 9 p.m. The Highland Inn Ballroom Lounge.

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For today’s Roll Call we call out Shannon Mulvaney, record store clerk and bass player for Anna Kramer & the Lost Cause.

Who are you?
Shannon Mulvaney = Record store working class elitist, bass player/band loser, Irish American prone to depression and sunburns and inappropriate drunken displays of affection or violence, devoted and flawed husband, record label “owner,” dog lover, he-man, conflicted, really a pretty nice guy and incapable of self-editing.

Describe yourself in three words.
See above. Especially the self-editing part.

Who — dead or alive — would most you like to meet?
John F. Kennedy at the Palm Springs compound of Frank Sinatra pre-election. I know Kennedy was a silver spoon but he was also a bad ass. Plus you would have hot Hollywood actresses poolside, Cosa Nostra poker games, great food and liquor and 3a.m. drives to Las Vegas when it was still for adults only.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Shit… Who don’t I want to slap in the face?

What song do you wish you had written?
“Ace of Spades” Motorhead. No wait, “the Mercy Seat” Nick Cave. No wait, “Tuesdays Gone” Lynyrd Skynyrd. No wait, all of Exile on Main Street… No, No…. “White Girl” X , no…….. What a stupid fucking question.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Elvis Presley. Elvis Costello is great. We all know that. But Presley was larger than life. And bat shit crazy, what with the drugs and guns and young girls in white cotton panties and one of the most memorable deaths in rock star history.
Maybe when Costello dies and the tell all books and tv miniseries come out I’ll change my mind.

LP, CD or MP3?
LP. duh. mp3’s are for people who don’t listen to music for enjoyment.

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
The “anti cell phone, especially the kind you wear on your head like a malignant growth while sitting next to me in public places like a bar and talking about your fucking 401k” trend. Douche bags.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
The trend of young male hipsters who wear women’s jeans. Unless you have a huge dick, please, for the love of God, shop in the men’s section, Nancy boys. Neil Young should be allowed to kick you in the balls.

With whom would you most like to play a game of spin the bottle?
Exene (circa ‘82), Amy Poehler, Amy Sedaris, Zooey Deschanel, the girl who sang for Shocking Blue, Emmylou Harris (circa Elite Hotel).

Anna Kramer & the Lost Cause play a benefit show for Ted Welson at The Star Bar on Fri., Dec. 19th. Details to be announced.

Anna Kramer (Live in Atlanta)- I Don’t Want to Be… from entertainmentresearch on Vimeo.

(Photo by Chad Radford)

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To celebrate the forthcoming vinyl compilation of Atlanta’s finest outsider, art punk, DIY, post-hardcore and non-garage rock bands, We No Fun,  a gaggle of bands and DJs are headed over to 97 Estoria tonight (Fri., Nov. 28th) to throw a pre-party.

Bands scheduled to perform include Hawks, Brass Castle, Sunglasses, Vera Fang, Skin Problems and Lay Down Mains.

The actual release party for the record won’t be happening until the last weekend in January.

But if you would like a sneak peak at what the record has in store, come check out the show tonight.

The show is free and starts at 8 p.m.

For more information on the record, including a track list and details regarding the forthcoming We No Fun Fest in January at The Drunken Unicorn, head over to the We No Fun Myspace page.

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Atlanta blog Cable & Tweed reported today that Ryan Adams and Co. are coming back to Atlanta, to make up for a botched performance back in October.

According to Cable & Tweed:

…it looks like Ryan and the band are going to make up for any disappointment. Atlanta Music Guide says that they will play at the Fox Theatre on March 20, and fans who attended the October 17 show can go for free. I presume other individuals can buy tickets per usual, but the show is not yet on the Fox calendar.

Head over to AMG for further details on the ticket exchange program.

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The three little ladies who make up Murfreesboro, Tenn. trio Those Darlins kick out an awful lot of twang with their debut, three-song EP, “Wild One.” Together they helm an unruly marriage of ornery wit and traditional country sounds that come together with an indie rock M.O.

I caught up with guitarist and vocalist Jessi Darlin last week and talked about everything from the old Nashville music scene to the production on the new Vampire Weekend album.

Those Darlins play the Earl w/ O’death and Vortex Park on Tues., Dec. 2nd. $10. 9 p.m. 488 Flat Shoals Rd. 404-522-3950.

Is Wild One EP your first release?
Yes. It’s our first release. The other songs on the Myspace page are just older recordings. Live stuff and things that we just have.

Are you all from Murfreesboro , Tenn. or did you come there from somewhere else?
We all live in Murfreesboro now. I’m from Kentucky, Kelley’s from South Carolina and Nikki is from Virginia. Kelly went to college here and me and Nikki just kind of moved here and we all met … It has one of the top recording schools in the country, so a lot of musicians move here who know that they’re supposed to go to college but don’t know what to major in beside music, so they move here and do that.

Who plays what in the band?
I play guitar and bass, Kelley plays guitar and bass and Nikki plays some baritone Ukulele and we all sing.

And you are all Darlins, like the Ramones or something?
Yep, exactly.

Who’s your drummer?
Linwood Regensburg Jr. He’s our roommate.

Are there many places to see music in Murfreesboro?
Off and on … There have been some really awesome venues that have opened here, but they all end up getting shut down for a million different reasons. This town is cursed like that. But whenever something good opens the town has a ton of incredible bands coming through. Currently there aren’t any music venues open.

Is there a good house show scene?
Definitely. There are always house shows here. Whenever a venue closes down someone will just start booking at their house until someone else comes up with enough money to get another venue open.

Tell me about the EP and the full-length that you’re working on now.
We recorded the EP in Brooklyn and the album in Brooklyn, so we’ve been playing New York a lot. We’re recording with Jeff Curtin who has a studio, called Tree Fort. He helped produce Vampire Weekend’s debut album and he does all the sound for Pitchfork TV.

darlins from t.v. on Vimeo.

“Wild One” MP3

(more…)

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This Tuesday night Fringe Factory and Movie Lounge present a free screening of director Barbet Schroeder’s 1969 cult/hippie classic, More.

The film captures a slice of life in ’60s Europe where youth and drug cultures collide.  Stefan (Klaus Grunberg) ventures to Paris after graduation, where he becomes enamored with a young American hippie girl, Estelle (Mimsy Farmer).  She lures him to Ibiza, where the dangerous and exotic world of LSD and nude sunbathing are pursued before succumbing to the destructive trappings of heroin addiction.

The film follows the two youths as they fall deeply into a downward spiral of drug abuse and denial.

Famous for its moody Pink Floyd soundtrack, songs in the film include “Green is the Colour,” “Cymbaline,” “The Nile Song” and “Ibiza Bar.”

DJs, as well as a few short films and movie trailers will also be seen and heard throughout the night.

Doors open at 9 p.m. Film starts at 10 p.m. FREE. The Highland Inn Ballroom Lounge is located at 644 N. Highland Ave. near the intersection of North Ave. and N. Highland. For more information call (404) 874-5756 Ext. 450.

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Today, Sat., Nov. 22nd, the infamous A-hole Santa returns to Criminal Records for the annual holiday sob fest. Santa, along with his trusty elves, Dookie and Crappy, will be available for photos and abuse from noon to 6 p.m., or until the crankiness becomes too unbearable — whichever comes first. After all the tears and beer have been mopped up, the Eagles of Death Metal will take the stage to spread a little holiday cheer as well.

Photographs with A-hole Santa are free, but don’t be fooled by Santa’s tough exterior, he’s a softie deep down inside. A-hole Santa will be collecting donations for PAWS Atlanta, as he does every year.

The Eagles of Death Metal will be performing live on Criminal’s stage at 6 p.m. before they head over to Center Stage to play later on this evening.

The role of A-hole Santa is played by local bon vivant, Henry Owings, of Chunklet magazine fame. The elves Dookie and Crappy play themselves.

The new and improved Criminal Records is located at 1154-A Euclid Avenue, in the Little 5 Points.

(Photo courtesy of Criminal Records)

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