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BEN GERRARD
This week's Club Notes starts in the Ricker
Theatre & Bar the night of Thursday, Hay 6. Local
singer-songwriter Justin Evans is serenading a
small crowd of around 20 with his country folk,
sounding like a slightly-less-schmaltzy, early John
Michael Montgomery. Some of Evans' songs have a
more laid-back Stealers Wheel feel while another
has a similar tempo and feel to Clapton's version
of “Knockin' On Heaven's Door." In the song,
Evans expresses the sentiment. "I just hope that
my cigarettes don't get wet* He has a clear and
strong baritone voice that allows him to slip
easily from country to heartfelt, James Taylor-
esque, American-style folk, covering emotive
issues such as the attempted cremation of Gram
Parsons' body in Joshua Tree National Park with
the lines “Have you ever seen the Northern
Lights? / It's like an angel burning in the desert"
Evans' penultimate song is also the last track
waitng to be laid down for his new CD, which is
currently being recorded. It's a classic road song,
and in true country style, it pines for rolling miles
and a place where you can leave it all behind.
Justin Evans is a powerful vocalist 3nd a strong
lyricist His guitar playing solidly reinforces his
tunes, choosing not to get in the way of his lyrics
with challenging intricacy or unexpected changes.
crowd follows closely as the trio alternates
between metallo-math and a kind of heavy pop
leading into interesting musical excursions. After
four or five of these impressive instrumentals,
A.Armada turns toward dynamic, furious indie rock
with endearing and engaging emo-punk-pop
vocals from Josh McCauley. Stylistically,
A.Armada lies close to its heroes, the local math
moguls in Cinemechanica, but with strong hints of
the pop-emo of yet another local band. An Epic At
Best For thore after something different from the
run-of-the-mill heavy rock—but still preferably
scream-free—check out A.Armada.
To say that the next group takes the vocal
sound of bands like Portishead and Garbage and
lays them over Metallica-style heavy rock is vastly
underselling the divinely rocking sound of Bella
Lea, led by the serene screaming kitten. Maura
Davis (formerly of the more experimental outfit
Denali). The Richmond, VA native has enlisted
bassist Stephen Howard, power drummer Ryan
Raspsys and guitarist Matt Clark to tour her
home-recorded demos, which have been re
recorded by the band in Chicago, before taking
the leap into a full-length record. Bella Lea mixes
mind-numbing, beautifully-voiced, bombastic
indie rock with gorgeously shimmering ballads and
Little Country Giants
an ode to preservation and change
Sound Tribe Sector Nine
Friday- June 3
Saturday. June 4
Masquerade Music Park
Atlanta GA
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Real traditional Americana, complete with
three-part harmonies, upright bass and lap steel
is the next offering.in Flicker, courtesy of Rome,
GA's, Little Country Giants. The delightfully-twee
hayseed-harmonies and old-time instrumentation
of Cameron Lee Cook on bass-vocals and Russell
Cook on guitar-vocals have an infectious quality;
combined with the extra vocals and high country
shuffles played by Dax Rosetti, on just a snare
head with steel brushes, and Mark Rogers' lone
some lap steel the quartet soon has the room
packed and the crowd jumpin' in their seats.
The Giants' original music drifts between the
cute-folk sound of the 1940s classic “You Are My
Sunshine* and the Appalachian-bluegrass feel of
"In the Jailhouse Now,* with lots of sweet side
tracks along the way. While Cameron Lee's AUison
Kraus/ Emmylou Harris-like vocal sobs are the
most beautiful Russell is not far behind with his
old ragtimey vocal character. This relatively young
foursome is a gorgeous blast from the past* like a
polished Airstream cutting through the city smog
and rolling out over bucolic, daisy-dotted pas
tures.
The next stop is the Caledonia Lounge, and
after a late start the cutting young local trio
/LArmada sets the walls ringing with intricate,
guitar-melody-based math-core from Matt Nelson,
heavy rhythmic drumming from Wynn Hyatt and
time signatures that turn on a dime. The small
heart-wrenching torch songs. This band is a
ground-leveling force. Watch out for Bella Lea,
because a sound this compelling, seductive and
marketable won't be contained for bng. Davis'
cover of Jacques Brel's *If You Go Away" is the
ultimate, speed-driven, edgy, sugar rush.
Saturday night I walk into the Flicker to see
local new-jazz phenomenon Kenosha Kid.
Kenosha Kid is the brainchild of guitarist Dan
. Nettles, and tonight his band consists of the very
talented Jeff Reilly on drums, the melodic and
equally talented upright bassist Chris Enghauser,
and New York saxophonist Peter Van Huffel, a
great addition.
I have seen a few of Nettles' cinematically-
partnered performances, and tonight the Kid per
forms a live original score to the 45-minute slide
show "Midnight Til Noon.* Presented by UGA's Jim
Virga, it features photos taken over a 12-hour
period in downtown Athens by photojournalism
majors. The new-school jazz is cool and less lyrical
than Nettles' previous work, contrasting—rather
than complementing—the slide show, albwing it
to contribute more of its own subtle narrative.
MitGerrsrd
Ben Germrd is a radio journalist and writer
thing and working in Athens, dub Notes is a weekly
look at the local dub scene.
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ATHFEST 2005 CD
20 bends from Athens, GA in support of the Athens Music 6 Arts Festival.
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MAY 11, 2005 -FLAGP0LE.COM 31