Crib Notes

Last week Dry Ink Magazine posted a video piece that documents the final show at Rob’s House in East Atlanta before the label’s founder Trey Lindsay moved to New York. The video features interviews and segments of performances by Carbonas, Gentleman Jesse, the Black Lips. Drunken chatter from all of the above punctuates a marathon of interviews conducted by Tom Cheshire of All Night Drug Prowling Wolves.

The video does a good d job of capturing the mood (and the heat) of the last show there before handing the reigns over to the Danger House crew.

The video can be seen here.

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The Star Bar turned into an all-out bro-down as the two-day Fringe Binge punk fest. wrapped-up Saturday night. Carbonas, the Rubber City Rebels and the Rent Boys rocked the swarm of scenesters in attendance with drunken aplomb. The Rent Boys hadn’t played in 7 years, and every dude in the house hugged and growled in elation while a man in short shorts stalked the crowd, pouring Tequila straight from the bottle into people’s mouths. A treacherous slick of sweat, spilled drinks and broken glass coated the floor and geysers of beer foam erupted in the audience as beer cans rocketed overhead. The Rent Boys’ welcome reunion was long overdue, and the show was a testament to the timeless qualities of truly fun and debaucherous music.

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The show at Rob’s House this Saturday, July 26th was a well-kept secret… sort of. There wasn’t as much as a peep on the internet or in the local media about the Black Lips playing a free house show in East Atlanta, but word-of-mouth brought about 100 - 150 people out, which actually made it about the perfect sized crowd.

The flier that you see to your left didn’t even show up until the day of the show.

Regardless, the basement at 1318 Ormewood Ave. felt like a scene from Dante’s Infero as Predator, Gentleman Jesse and Carbonas exploded in a haze of smoke and unbearable heat. Sweat-soaked bodies packed the tiny dungeon as Gentleman Jesse played its final show before bassist Dustin Nigro moves off to NYC. This show also served as a successful test run for the group with new guitarist Adrian Barrera (also of the Hiss).

For many long-time but estranged fans, seeing the Black Lips in a basement was a refreshing reminder of the days when most local venues wouldn’t even give the group the time of day for fear of property damage. Back then the Black Lips had nowhere else to play but house shows. Seeing them tear it up in such a cramped and sweaty environment was a return to the good old days. It was also the last show at Rob’s House before the label’s founder Trey Lindsay moves off to New York as well.

Could there have been a better way to bring an end to the era? The show was a visceral return to form that literally brought it all back home.

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In keeping with last year’s music issue I’ve compiled a list of my 10 favorite local releases that came down the line between May ’07 and May ’08.

If I had to single out the best Atlanta label for this year, thus far there’s no doubt that it would be Douche Master Records. But the label’s reach has extended far beyond Atlanta over the last year. Excellent singles in the DM catalogue by groups, such as Hex Error and Cheap Time, as well as the Black & White’s self-titled full-length are all worthy of note, but they don’t fit into the category of a “local release.” The one significant local release from Douche Master this year is the reissue of Carbonas’ “Black Out” single … Is it a faux paw to list reissues in the year’s best of list? I think so … But it’s worthy of an honorable mention. The “Black Out” single is a good companion to Carbonas’ third full-length, which shows a tremendous amount of growth on the group’s part. Vocalist Greg King’s voice sounds so much more controlled than it has on previous releases and the group’s grasp on tight, manic melodies in songs, like “Phone Booth” and “Ass Vogel” are so much more refined than any of the group’s previous records that it easily eclipses anything else to come out of Atlanta this year.

I also want to make a note about including the Selmanaires 7-inch in this list and not the album, The Air Salesmen. Whenever I play the CD I catch myself skipping to the tracks from the single. As soon as they’re finished I play them again, rather than letting the rest of the songs play out. For me, the single, “Just to Get Your Love” b/w “Verdigris Intrigue” are such powerful songs that they outshine the rest of the album.

So here’s my list…

1.) Carbonas — Carbonas (Goner Records)
2.) Atlas Sound — Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See but Cannot Feel (Kranky)
3.) Zoroaster — Dog Magic (Terminal Doom Records/Battle Kommand Records)
4.) The Black Lips — Good Bad Not Evil (Vice)
5.) Baby Shakes — “Tell Me Now,” “Baby, It’s You,” “Come On, Babe” 10-inch (Rob’s House Records)
6.) Anna Kramer & the Lost Cause – The Rustic Contemporary Sounds Of… (International Hits)
7.) The Coathangers – The Coathangers (Rob’s House Records)
8.) The Selmanaires — “Just To Get Your Love” 7-inch (International Hits)
9.) Noot d’ Noot – “Jiggle City” 7-inch (Solutionist)
10.) Daniel Clay – The Protestant (Self-released)

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