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6 I Thursday, June 22, 2006 | The Red & Black
VARIETY
Athens prepares
for celebration
FILE | The Red & Black
A Pylon was a co-headliner at last year’s AthFest. This
year’s headliners include Modern Skirts, drivin n’ cryin,
and Now It’s Overhead.
By KELLY SKINNER
kskinner@randb.com
When a town has more
than 400 bands at any given
time, there is bound to be
brilliance amidst the mix,
and for the past ten years,
AthFest has made the dis
covery of these acts its mis
sion.
This year’s festival will
feature more than 150 bands
from Athens and elsewhere
performing at 17 venues and
two outdoor stages.
While the main focus of
the festival is on the music,
additional attractions have
been added with time.
Among the free outdoor
events this year (besides
the outdoor stages on
Washington and Hull
Streets) are Kidsfest and the
Artist Market.
As for the special events
this year, there will be a
screening on Wednesday
night at the 40 Watt of the
film “Two-Headed Cow,” fol
lowed shortly thereafter by
the Sprockets Music and
Video Competition.
Other special events
include Skate Park of Athens
demonstrations Saturday,
the Teenscreen Film
Fest (also Saturday) and a
worship service outside
of the Morton Theatre
Sunday.
Flagpole Magazine will
host its eighth annual
Flagpole Music Awards show
Thursday night, kicking off
the musical side of the festi
val.
Every year, a panel of local
insiders chooses bands or
musicians to represent 19
different categories.
Flagpole then opens up
the nomination process to its
readers, allowing them to
vote on nominees or to write
in new ones.
The awards show will fea
ture short performances by
Dark Meat, Phosphorescent,
Modern Skirts, Producto and
Mandy Jane & the Jaws of
Life.
According to Flagpole’s
music editor, Chris Hassiotis,
nominations will be present
ed by musicians or other
common faces in the local
music scene. A few surprise
presenters also are expected.
Entertainment through
out the awards show
includes break dance per
formances, announcing win
ners of the Sprockets Music
Video Competition and jazz
music from The Magictones.
Hassiotis encourages peo
ple to attend both the
awards show and the festival
in general.
“People can see anything
that they want to,” Hassiotis
said in regards to the musical
variety at AthFest.
When asked what bands
to look out for, Hassiotis rec
ommended seeing bands
Heros Severum and Time
Toy, claiming that both per
formances should be “swell.”
Jojo Glidewell of the band
Modern Skirts will be per
forming with his band both
at the award show and on
one of the main stages.
“Being a headliner this
year is a pretty big deal,” said
Glidewell. “You get a lot of
exposure playing at a club at
AthFest, but on the main
stage in one of the main
slots, tons of people will hear
you whether they plan to
attend the concert or if they
are just passing through.”
Glidewell also said a great
thing about AthFest is that
“you get to pop in every
where and see bands you
keep hearing about and
never get a chance to see
perform.”
Among the several bands
Glidewell hopes to see this
weekend are Dark Meat,
Ginger Envelope, The Whigs,
The Empties, Cine-
mechanica and Sleepy
Horses .
“AthFest really is some
thing that local musicians
and non-musicians alike
should take advantage of,”
said Kay Stanton of Casper
& the Cookies.
“There are so many great
bands in this town that we
get a little spoiled and don't
see a lot of what is out there,”
Stanton said. “AthFest offers
a chance to check out several
acts in one weekend. And
unlike some music festivals
in other towns, AthFest is
geographically compact
enough that, for the most
part, you don’t need to drive
to enjoy it.”
Nuci’s Space is among the
17 venues housing acts dur
ing the festival. When asked
what people could expect
from Saturday night’s lineup,
director of development Will
Kiser said, “People can
expect a mellow, acoustic
sound that really puts a lot of
pressure and emphasis on
songwriting and ability. None
of these performers hide
behind effects or stage
antics. These are seriously
talented individuals.”
Nugi’s Space has been a
venue for AthFest since its
opening in 2000 and also will
be participating in panel dis
cussions during the festival.
Kiser said that Nugi’s
Space picked its performers
based on their high level of
quality and their crowd fol
lowings. Though this venue
and this festival are both
non-profit, Kiser sees the
results of this festival as
being far more important
than money.
“AthFest really takes the
time to appreciate what we
have here in town - a really
active, flourishing artistic
community. We spend most
of the year just living in it and
almost taking it for granted.
During AthFest, we get to
pause, take a deep breath,
look around and pat these
bands, organizers and artists
on the back and really cele
brate Athens. I also really
like the fact that we give ex-
Athenians and music fans a
chance to come back and
visit and take everything in,”
Kiser said.
AthFest has been ranked
as a top 20 event in the
Southeast for the month of
June by the Southeast
Tourism Society three times
now, motivating fans from
out of state to travel to the
festival.
Caroline Lorenz, a senior
at Bowdoin College in Maine,
said she is attending AthFest
for the first time this week
end.
Although she has never
heard of any of the bands
playing this year, Lorenz said
she is eager to experience the
music scene she has heard so
much about during its most
active weekend.
“I go to a really small col
lege so we don’t really have a
music scene. My friend told
me about Athens and
AthFest, and since I had the
opportunity to come down
for a visit, I figured that this
weekend would be better
than any,” said Lorenz.
Warped Tour promises to rock Atlanta
SPECIAL | The Red & Black
▲ Punk rock veterans NOFX will be one of the bands head
lining this year’s Vans Warped Tour.
By JOEL PENN
For The Red & Black
Imagine sweltering tem
peratures, crowds of sweaty
teens, a sea of mohawks and
music loud enough to make
your ears bleed. To some,
this may sound like a bizarre,
cultish torture ritual, but
others will recognize this as
the annual rock onslaught
known as the Vans Warped
Tour.
Making a stop at HiFi
Buys Amphitheatre Wed
nesday, the Warped Tour is a
music festival that tours the
country every summer fea
turing punk rock acts, as well
as other various genres pep
pered into the mix.
For many, Warped Tour is
the biggest concert event of
the summer. This huge musi
cal carnival gives punks
young and old a chance to
catch several of their favorite
bands in one mosh pit-filled
day.
Since its inaugural run in
1994, the tour has attracted
punk giants and under
ground hipster acts alike,
blending the genres into a
crowd-pleasing spectacle —
and this year will be no
exception.
The 2006 lineup includes
long-time punk rock vets
NOFX and Less Than Jake,
as well as newcomers like
The Academy Is, Motion City
Soundtrack and local
favorites Cartel.
Post-hardcore rockers
Thursday, From First to Last
and Underoath also will
grace the Warped Tour stage.
Though the multi-stage
format provides enough non
stop music to keep even the
most easily distracted per
son happy, the entertain
ment doesn’t stop when the
amps are turned off.
Between and during most
of the bands’ sets, you can
find live skate and BMX bike
performances, as well as
nearly a hundred booths and
tents.
Whereas the atmosphere
around the skate ramps feels
like the X-Games, the atmos
phere around the convoy of
booths and tents is more like
a twisted flea market, offer
ing anything from band mer
chandise to lessons on how
to become a roadie.
From the Slim Jim booth
to the PETA2 booth, there’s
always a wide array of inter
esting tents to explore.
To successfully have an
amazing time, you have to
beat the heat.
The show kicks off
at noon and typically runs
until 10 or 11 p.m., so it’s
important to wear comfort
able shoes and light clothing
and stay hydrated (with
water, not beer).
It’s a good idea to drink
plenty of water before even
going into the park since the
gravel—and perhaps your fel
low concert-goers—can be
rather unforgiving if you
become dehydrated and pass
out in a crowd.
Also, if you are a fan of
moshing, it may be wise to
pace yourself throughout the
day so you still have some
thing left for the last band.
Dancing for 11 hours
straight in late June temper
atures can really take it out
of you.
The high energy of the
shows does have a strange
way of keeping you going,
though, so if all this madness
sounds appealing to you,
grab your sunscreen, put on
your favorite band shirt and
go wild at Warped Tour.
AthFest to feature
two hip-hop stages
By TRAVIS WILLIAMS
trwillia@randb.com
In “Field of Dreams,” voic
es proclaim that, “If you build
it, they will come.” It seems
that, similarly, in the Athens
hip-hop scene, “If you give
them a stage, the people will
rock!”
Following the above
mantra, AthFest is giving
Athens hip-hop the stage —
two to be exact — and in the
opinions of several local hip
hop acts, AthFest’s height
ened attention to the hip-hop
community has been rightful
ly earned.
“This is only the begin
ning,” said 1000 Grams, a
University student and mem
ber of the local hip-hop band
The Renegadez.
The Renegadez recognize
that solidifying themselves as
a hip hop act in Athens has
been a slow process, but they
stay encouraged by the fans.
“We’ve got a quality prod
uct, and people need to hear
it,” said John Vereen, a local
hip-hop producer and musi
cian.
However, members of the
local hip-hop scene have
become accustomed to the
uphill struggle of establishing
a rap career in Athens.
Undaunted, Vereen is lead
ing the charge to make hip-
hop more visible this year
through AthFest.
“It’s been slow to devel
op,” said Ishues, a local hip-
hop emcee, who will be per
forming at AthFest this week
end.
“It’s definitely harder for a
hip-hop act to get time in
AthFest,” said Ishues, “but
hip-hop is more than just an
expression of talent, it’s a
movement.”
Slowly, the local hip-hop
movement has garnered sev
eral supporters, including
some in the AthFest commit
tee.
“Now people should pay
attention, open their eyes
and explore,” said Troy
Aubrey of the AthFest com
mittee.
This is good news for hip-
hop groups since Aubrey is in
charge of booking the acts.
“I’ve been trying to get
more hip-hop acts, and I’m
very glad to book the acts we
have,” said Aubrey.
Outside all the talent and
expression, however, hip-hop
tends to carry a negative stig
ma, but Aubrey feels the “few
bad apples” are certainly not
the norm, saying that hip-
hop music is “usually posi
tive.”
The big question still
remains. Is the AthFest
crowd ready for hip-hop to
take a lead role? In response
to that question, Vereen said,
“Why not Athens, the rest of
the world is listening.”
British act pleases
fans with new album
By ALEC WOODEN
For The Red & Black
If you can’t get enough of
the current British music
invasion, rejoice, for power-
pop trio Keane released their
newest album, “Under the
Iron Sea,” Tuesday, June 200,
this album may validate them
as more than part of a pass
ing fad.
As a follow-up to their suc
cessful 2004 debut release
“Hopes and Fears,” the
band’s sophomore effort car
ries substantial pressure for
the band.
Only twice since the start
of the modern British inva
sion in 1995 has one of the
major British acts topped out
the American charts with its
albums.
The innovative stylings of
Radiohead achieved the feat
with “Kid A” in 2000, and they
have come close twice since.
Coldplay — the leaders of
the invasion, at least in name
recognition — have achieved
the honor only once, with
2005’s “X&Y.”
Oasis had numerous sin
gles reach No. 1, but could
never catapult an album
quite that high.
Keane’s “Under the Iron
Sea” finds the band mostly
up to its old tricks, staying
true to its formula of radio-
friendly, piano-driven pop
that made 2004’s “Hopes and
Fears” — recently certified as
a gold album — a sensation.
Though the instrumenta
tion of the band still centers
around a piano and synthe
sizer backbone, “Under the
Iron Sea” is a significantly
darker turn for the band, with
bleaker, more cynical lyrics
and sinister, moody synthe
sizer patches from key
boardist Tim Rice-Oxley.
The album seems to be a
tribute and a testament to
ALBUM REVIEW
Album: “Under the Iron Sea”
Grade: A-
Verdict: Another solid collection of
potential hits.
the last two years of the band
members’ lives.
Constant touring and pro
moting on 2004’s wave of suc
cess has seemed to transform
the band from wide-eyed pop
stars into battle-worn veter
ans of an industry toward
which they are more than a
little wary.
The album’s first single,
“Is It Any Wonder?” reflects
these sentiments with lyrics
like, “Is it any wonder that I
feel betrayed?”
The band is at its best on
songs like “Crystal Ball” and
“Nothing In My Way” which
have a wall-of-sound fullness
to them.
As expected, lead singer
Tom Chaplin shines through
out, delivering another solid
vocal performance and build
ing on his previous reputa
tion of crafting flawless
melodies to complement the
overall sound of the band.
“Under the Iron Sea” is,
without a doubt, worth
checking out. Even if it isn’t a
chart-topper, it’s sure to
please Keane fans with its
freshly dark spin on the
band’s sound.
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