Crib Notes

From the Whigs mailing list:

“Due to the unfortunate loss of the Georgia Theater, The Whigs will be playing a fundraiser Tuesday June 23 at the Melting Point. All proceeds to benefit the staff of the Georgia Theater. Also, our good friends Dead Confederate will be sharing the stage with us. Please join us for this important cause. Early show. Tickets can be purchased HERE.”

Georgia Theatre Fundraiser, The Melting Point. Tues., June 23. $10. ALL proceeds benefit the staff of the Georgia Theatre.

7:00 p.m. the New Familiars
9:15 p.m. Dead Confederate
10:30 p.m. the Whigs

(Photo courtesy the Whigs)

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Last night Athens’ much-heralded power trio the Whigs played an unannounced show at the small hometown venue Tasty World, debuting a number of songs off the band’s upcoming third full-length. The sign on the club’s door announced the band as the Bumpkin Café — something the club owner came up with, said drummer Julian Dorio — but text messages and Twitter work fast, and soon enough the club was bustling with a few scene vets and more than a few still-in-town-for-the-summer college kids eager to check out the tunes.

Over the past month the band has been holed up in its Athens practice space working out the new songs’ kinks, and frontman Parker Gispert recently decamped to Newnan, Ga., for a little time among the trees, a little time upon the lake to get some more lyric writing done before heading into the studio next week and out on tour later this summer.

Here, we’ll let Gispert explain it:

How are the new songs? More after the jump:

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Athens’ universally lauded post-grunge, Replacemtns-style rock trio the Whigs are set to perform their songs, “Already Young” and “Like A Vibration” on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” tomorrow night (Wed., Oct. 29th).

Click below to see the Whigs forthcoming tour dates opening for Kings of Leon.

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Brothers Gil Mantera and the Ultimate Donny get the party started with a breeze of soft-focus dance pop ripped right out of 1980-something and planted in the here and now. On the surface, it’s easy to dismiss GIL MANTERA’S PARTY DREAM as a spectacle of white leather, spandex and sensitive hair, but the live shows are undeniably entertaining. Think of an emotionally wrought hybrid of Kraftwerk and Tears for Fears, armed with bedroom eyes and Flashdance feet, and you know what to expect from the show Wed., SEPT. 10. Death Pill (featuring Negashi of Supreeme), Math Candy and Deepest Desires open. $7. 9 p.m. The Earl, 488 Flat Shoals Road. 404-522-3950. www.badearl.com.

THE N.E.C., ALL THE SAINTS, ADVENTURE Local rockers the N.E.C. continue their monthlong residency at the Star Bar with a show of psych-damaged garage punk. All the Saints applies the psychedelic approach to a sound that’s rooted much more deeply in a surreal pop terrain as the group crafts arching walls of dense resonance that blur the lines between goth, metal, noise and an emotionally charged dirge of rhythm and feedback. Adventure opens. $3. 9 p.m. Star Bar. 404-681-9018. www.starbaratlanta.com. — Chad Radford

THE WHIGS, TOKYO POLICE CLUB Athens trio the Whigs slalom through their catchy indie rock like Wile E. Coyote strapped to an Acme rocket, beaming power-pop ebullience and anxious, shifty winsomeness. Their second album, Mission Control, ambles from laconic rock waltzes (”Sleep Sunshine”) to jagged dance-punk (”Production City”), reprising a bevy of styles without missing a step. Ontario’s Tokyo Police Club plays energetic indie pop keyed by swirling keyboards and punchy, danceable rhythms. The colorful, caffeinated abandon of their new album, Elephant Shell, is as infectious as a room of snotty first graders. $15. 9 p.m. 40 Watt Club, Athens. 706-549-7871. www.40watt.com. — Chris Parker

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AT SXSW: Michael Stipe of R.E.M. (All photos by Perry Julien.)

Music conference vs. music festival.

Badges vs. wristbands vs. free shows.

Official showcases vs. un-official showcases.

Regardless of your opinions, there is something about 1,700 bands getting together for 24 hours of music.

I was able to see and photograph 49 bands over five days. Fucking rock excess.

Below are photos from: REM, Dark Meat, Ocha La Rocha, Elf Power, Dead Confederate, The Whigs, Von Bondies, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Raveonettes, Vampire Weekend, and X.

R.E.M.

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Remember when I wrote that Jan. 22 belonged to International Hits stars the Selmanaires and Anna Kramer & the Lost Cause? Well, make room in your spending budget for the Whigs. On Jan. 22, 2008, the Athens band will drop Mission Control, its second album and first since 2005’s Give ‘Em All a Big Fat Lip. Produced by Rob Schnapf (who produced Elliott Smith’s Either/Or and Beck’s Mellow Gold), it’s the Whigs’ major-label bow for ATO Records.

Expect more details on Mission Control soon. In the meantime, read Nikhil Swaminathan’s Nov. 16, 2005, review of their debut here, and buy a ticket to their Saturday, Oct. 20, co-headlining show with Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit.

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