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BACK TO HIGHER GROUND
The punk-rock crowd is putting in a good
showing at Lunch Paper on Thursday, May 12, as
young local garage rockers BlackWings turn their
amps up to 11 and go for it The Wings' backbone
is the duo of brothers Eric and Kerin Fortenbery
on guitar-vocals and drums respectively; they are
supplemented by guitarist Ron Cook and have
acquired a bass player in Robin Cofer, giving
some extra dark depth to their grungy heavy rock.
It's pretty hard to pick features out of the Wings'
songs since the set sounds like a heavy-rock
house-party affair due partly to the sub-par sound
traveling up the narrow bar—and partly to the
band's chosen genre. Some tracks feature stronger
vocals, which carry some melody and sound like
they could be quite good through a better P.A.;
the other distinguishing feature between the
Wings' songs is the level of distortion on the bass
and thrashy guitars. One thing is for sure: there
are no power ballads on offer from these earnest
ball-tearers, and indications are that there never
will be. At this point, I should mention that this
is a benefit show so that Lunch Paper can get a
new P.A.
Finishing the night in fine hard-rock style is
local four-piece. Dirty Sanchez & the Pancho
Villas. These guys rock harder than granite, but
with tons of nuclear-powered melodic bass lines
nating combinations as desired. It's a bit like
watching a train wreck at three different speeds
and never knowing when the speed will change, or
if the train is empty, or whether a*lot of people
are about to die, or if they already have.
And if they do die, you also don't know if they
will go to heaven or hell, and if the ones who go
to hell actually want to go to hell, as much as the
ones who go to heaven are happy to be going to
heaven. AU of this takes place in mere minutes.
The trick with this technique is to hold it all
together or. the time changes and make sure the
drummer doesn't explode, unless the drummer
wants to explode... So far Oh, Chemists is man
aging both, and at this point Fm reminded of
local duo Marriage: for their dramatic time
changes, their punk aesthetic and their sense of
humor and subtle theatre.
Elevado, the formerly Athenian band now
residing in Atlanta, is up next and this five-piece
also likes their time changes, but in a less rigid
and heavily ambient pop atmosphere that is
nothing like the former band. Elevado's big ethe
real sound uses keyboards, violin and laptop-
based washes, as well as the usual guitars and
drums. One thing that is not at all pretty about
Elevado is the vocals of leadman Justin Science,
which are more pointed and structural than
BlackWings
from Nathan Rudolf and stylish, hard-'90s
grunge-metal melody in the vocals of Jon Ivey.
Mid-set, the Pancho Villas find a way to take their
ultra-hard rock to a new level, and Rudolfs porno
posturing and fast finger work are a sight to
behold, while Erin Stagg^ power drumming is
coming in a close second. Meanwhile, Ivey pours
out fiery rock verbiage like Peter Garrett on speed
with his tackle in a vice.
The band's songs can also tend to become a
little hard to distinguish, but each has its own
vocal tone; some get a hint of the scream treat
ment, and others have stronger tonal variation
and a darkly charismatic style. Never before have I
seen a four-piece so propelled by its rhythm sec
tion, and while the vocals and lead guitar are sig
nificant players in this band, the rhythm section
is breaking new ground.
Oh, Chemists is a four-piece from Macon/
Athens and sporting a hectic and volatile style of
loose punk/ math-rock and one of those inter
esting creatures: the singing drummer. As the
boys open at Null's Space on Saturday night,
their volatility comes through via a rare technique
known around t!>e traps as play nice and slow,
then play really, really, really hard and fast, then
play slow and pretty, then play some mid-paced
retro-rock, then go crazy, and repeat in alter-
melodic or endearing. The band's penultimate
song is the most melodic and the vocals are
improved, but soon the guys revert to their dense
avant-experimentalism, sounding like whales at
war. I came in thinking I would really like Elevado
and leave realizing that there are parts to its
music that are likable, but overall I really don't
get it. The music is bold and interesting, but the
brashness and lack of melody makes it hard to
listen to for very long.
Between Sunday rain showers, local five-piece
Fairbum Royals plays its last show on the rooftop
of the Athens Music Museum next to Wuxtry
Records. After four years and three albums, the
happily melodic Tom-Petty-meets-The-Monkees-
style pop of the Royals is no more. The set is fab
ulous, the sound is great and the jangly, upbeat
indie pop drifts across downtown mesmerizing
passersby. The Royals do a great cover of Pulp's
'Common People' and continue to build in energy
and vibe as the set hits its peak and then ends,
forever, for now.
Ben Gerrard
Ben Gerrard is a radio journalist and writer
living and working in Athens. Club Notes is a
weekly look at the local club scene.
28 FLAGPOLE.COM • MAY 18, 2005
BEN GERRARD