Crib Notes

Like the city itself, the music scene in Atlanta often seems fragmented, in search of its identity. And like the city, it is made up of a host of players, and it can sometimes be difficult to find consistency in its frenzied output. That ain’t all bad; smaller, more insular scenes tend to yield a homogeneous result, and the A is nothing if not all over the place. Below, five reasons to hold out hope for music in our fair metropolis.

1. Over in the trendier-by-the-second East Atlanta Village, the newish 529 has been hosting some of the best local and non-local shows in town for several months now with a decided focus on indie rock’s grittier subgenres. The space is nice, too: it’s tiny, but thanks to the outdoor patio, not claustrophobic, and the band area feels more like a house show basement than a rock club. Down the street, the Earl is still the de facto club in the Village, but 529 is quickly becoming a go-to spot.

2. In Grant Park, Eyedrum has brilliantly bridged the gap between D.I.Y. show space and legit music venue for years now. It has long been known as the place to go for experimental and noise; this past year has seen performances from Chicago avant-jazz hotshot Ken Vandermark and sample-driven duo the Books, among others. Earlier this year, they reportedly faced closure due to the high cost of maintaining the space, but it seems they’ve managed to remain solvent enough to continue for now. In addition to live music, the gallery exhibits some interesting stuff from local artists. (more…)

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According to the East Atlanta neighborhood message board eavbuzz.net, Feed Your Head Music (493 Flat Shoals) owner Thom Osbourn was the victim of a robbery/assault that happened in the record store around 10:20 p.m on Sunday.

According to the post at eavbuzz.net,

A young, black male entered and appeared to have a gun concealed in a chip bag.  He asked Tom for all his money.  Tom told him that he didn’t have any sales for the day, so the kid told him he was going to take Tom’s laptop.  Tom told him to take it.  The kid seemed to get frustrated when he couldn’t get the power cord.  Tom told him he didn’t need it.  Tom discovered that the gun was actually a cell phone in the chip bag.  The kid began hitting Tom with his fists.  Then he picked up a turntable and an amp and hit Tom in the head with them.  Tom grabbed a bat and they struggled.  They ended up on the floor.

Randal was still next door at So Trendy and heard the yelling.  He called 911 and grabbed his pistol.  He ran outside and looked through Tom’s door.  Once he was certain that the kid didn’t have a weapon, Randal entered and told the kid to stay on the floor or he would blow the kid’s head off.

(more…)

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Twin Tigers

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There are a couple of good shows going on tonight in East Atlanta. If bleak and somewhat feminine, though mostly androgynous new wave electro pop skulk is your bag, Telepathe is headlining a show over at 529. The Living Rooms and Lemonade open. The cover is $8 and the show starts around 9 p.m.

If a catchier, ’60s inspired psyche rock sound is your thing, the Black Hollies from Jersey City are playing at the Earl. Reckless Hearts from Milwaukee and Atlanta’s Stolen Hearts also perform. $8. Doors open at 8:30.

Telepathe’s “Lights Go Down” mp3

(Photo by Eliza Douglas)

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Who are you?
Seth Bolton.

Describe yourself in three words.
Ready, To, Leave.

Who — dead or alive — would you most like to meet?
Will Ferrel in character as Brennan Huff from the movie Stepbrothers.

Who would you most like to slap in the face?
Michael Jackson ’cause it would probably fall off on impact.

What song do you wish you had written?
“The Bublight” by Joe Meek & The Blue Men.

Elvis Costello or Elvis Presley?
Presley for sho.

LP, CD or MP3?
MP3. Laziness.

If you could start one trend, what would it be?
Free stuff all the time.

If you could end one trend, what would it be?
Me being broke, always.

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

“How You Do It” mp3

Living Rooms play 529 on Tues., June 23 with Lemonade and Telepathe. $8. 9 p.m.

(Photo courtesy Seth Bolton)

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CL Crib Notes contributor Dominick Brady sat down with A3C Festival co-founder Brian Knott at the Earl in East Atlanta. In this interview we discussed the origins of A3C and where Knott thinks it is headed.

Earlier this year, Knott announced the A3C move from the Center Stage complex to East Atlanta. The festival is scheduled to take place October 1-3.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Post has been edited.

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Italian garage punk band Movie Star Junkies are playing a free in-store performance at Reactionary Records in East Atlanta today (Sun., April 11) at 6 p.m. Reactionary Records is located at 465-A Flat Shoals Ave. across the street from the Earl.

(Photo courtesy Movie Star Junkies)

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This Saturday night (Jan. 24th) Judi Chicago will kick-off their new monthly residency at 529 called Dancing. The show will feature performances from local up-and-comer’s Sealions, as well as a live set by Judi Chicago, followed by a pretty intense DJ set that is said will involve “a mass of live electronics and toys that are synched-up to the tunes” they’re spinning.

If the description of their DJ set fills your head with images of something akin to a scene lifted straight out of the video for Herbie Hancock’s 1983 break dance-era classic “Rockit,” you’re probably on the right page.

Dancing will take place on the 4th Saturday night of every month at 529. Head over to the Atlanta Music Guide and you can check out a break down of the Judi’s favorite dance floor fillers.

… and yes, “Rockit” made their list.

$5. 9 p.m. 529 is located at 529 Flat Shoals Rd. (across the street from the Flat Iron). 404-228-6769.

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Tomorrow night, Tues., Nov. 25th, the new club at 529 Flat Shoals Rd., simply called 529, will celebrate a soft opening and offer a first glimpse at the new digs of the spot that formerly housed the Village Sports Bar.

The pieces are all still falling into place, and as of today (Mon., Nov. 24th) the website isn’t active. But the schedule of bands booked to perform on the new stage throughout December and January is already starting to fill up.

Shows already confirmed include:

December
12/6 – the Gaye Blades
12/13 – Recompas, Chris Devoe
12/20 – Lyonnais
12/27 – Airoes

January
1/10 – All the Saints, Balkans
1/17 – Anna Kramer & the Lost Cause
1/24 – Judi Chicago (4th Saturday residency)
1/31 – Noot D’ Noot

Judi Chicago will be holding down a monthly happening called ‘Dancing’. A pop-art celebration of the rituals of movement to music, on the fourth Saturday of every month. According to Ben: “Judi Chicago will present a curated blend of live music and DJs playing kinetic sounds to move to. The format will be rhythmic: the full gamut from slamming house music, disco, funk, techno, ragga, hip-hop (the fun kind), electro, drum and bass… A dancehall buffet.

In true Judi Chicago-style, the hedonism will be augmented/sliced and diced with a deconstructionist’s scalpel. We’ll be exploring the art, science and psychology of body-moving. It will be a lot of fun.

We’ll be working on different experiments, events and themes to take place within the venue each month: penciled in our margins right now are such concepts as a genre-fisting ‘wheel o’ four-tunes’ that decides / re-decides the musical format every 30 minutes, an entire night of records being played backwards in an effort to invoke some form of demon or inspire a mass suicide, and a marathon set of Cannibal Corpse / Soulja Boy mash-ups (2 of these may actually happen).”

Karl Injex has Friday nights locked down with a wide array of DJ sets.
Saturdays are currently being booked by Tight Bros. Network.
Wednesdays are booked by Party Panda Productions.

Full disclosure: For the soft opening tomorrow night the club has invited me down to spin records starting around 8 or 9 p.m.

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This coming Tuesday, the amplifiers will crank up at 551 Flat Shoals for the first time since the Echo Lounge shut its doors in January 2005.

If the permits come through in time, the space last occupied by the popular indie rock club will reopen then as East Atlanta Icehouse, so named to commemorate the building’s original use in the 1920s, which was as – wait for it… – an icehouse.

Shows have already been scheduled through the rest of the month, featuring such acts as the Subliminator, VieTNam, 50 Million Fables, the jonesplan, AMUL9, Luchagors and Lust.

But ex-Echo Lounge patrons shouldn’t expect to re-enter that club’s comfortably lived-in shabbiness. The space has experienced a total makeover, thanks to co-owners and co-brothers, Ed and Mike Murphy, who have installed new hardwood floors, repainted the lounge area light green and even gussied the place up with a granite-y bar and wood trim accents, for fuck’s sake. Suck on that, EARL!

From the online photos, we’re guessing the place doesn’t have the typical PBR vibe that folks associate with such East Atlanta joints like the Flatiron and Gravity Pub. Whether that’s good or bad will be up to customers to decide, but Icehouse GM Chip English assures us the place is real nice.

Another addition is a full-service restaurant – complete with patio – serving until 3 a.m. For now, the bar will only have beer and wine, but English says liquor will be added later on.

For bands looking for a gig, the club has kindly posted this online advice from booking manager Chet Knight:

“All music styles are welcome. However, you must be able to sell tickets. Garage bands with no following what so ever; might consider getting on with a band that does have a following. Do not become discouraged, you gotta start somewhere.”

Let the music begin.

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Empty and silent for more than three years, the former Echo Lounge has lately served as a sad reminder of the apparent downturn of an Atlanta live-music scene suffering the loss of several notable venues.

But that may soon change when it reopens as East Atlanta Icehouse, a nightclub and restaurant that promises a wide range of musical acts.

“We’re hoping desperately to be open by the end of May,” says Chip English, who, along with partner Mike Murphy, is working to secure the remaining permits needed to reopen the venue.

English, who will manage the facility, says the musical acts will be “anything from rock-and-roll to bluegrass to zydeco. We’d like to be known for variety.”

Unlike the Echo Lounge, which was forced to close when city officials realized it was operating on a restaurant license but didn’t even have a kitchen, the Icehouse will offer a full menu and even serve lunch on a patio.

According to English, the building had sat vacant so long because a daycare had opened nearby shortly after the Echo Lounge closed, which made it impossible to renew the liquor license. Once the daycare finally closed, the partners jumped on the property.

However, the Icehouse still needs a zoning exemption because, as a music venue, it’s too close to neighboring homes. But Ed Gilgor, chairman of the local neighborhood planning unit, says that’s a small hurdle.

“The community wants this facility,” he says. “But, given its proximity to homes, we have to be certain it happens in a way that works for everybody.”

Noise shouldn’t be a problem. Originally built as a storage house for ice in the 1920s, English notes, the building has eight-inch-thick walls that are virtually soundproof.

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