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MUSIC NEWS AND GOSSIP
Well, I guess it's the season to be jolly. So,
get jolly, people. Rest ye hairy gentlemen and
all that. But, before you do anything, throw
on a blanket and read about what's boiling
this week...
No Funds, My Babe, No Funds: The newest
Kickstarter campaign happening in Athens
comes courtesy of songwriter Lera Lynn. She's
looking to raise $2,500 to shoot a video with
director Brett Vaughn. The song in question
is "Good Hearted Man," and it would be the
second video from her upcoming album, Have
You Met Lera Lynn? The campaign is a short
one and will expire on Jan. 1 and, of course,
you get different rewards depending on the
size of your donation. Although the first video
("Bobby Baby," also by Vaughn) from the
record was a sparse affair (that looks great, by
the way) she plans for the next one to include
"day-dream sequences and dialogue... 12-14
Lera Lynn
actors, two production assistants, a make-up
artist, a costume artist and a'set-designer/
prop master." So it's more of a short film.
Sadly, this is the first local fundraising cam
paign I can't really get behind. Videos are
not records. While they can be cool, and are
undoubtedly an art form of their own and
potentially add to the impact of a song, they
tenft to principally serve as advertisements
for records, and I don't think fans should
be solicited, no matter the reward, to pay
for advertising. If you disagree, feel free to
cough it up via the link available at www.
leralymr.com.
Name It: Perpetually under-appreciated local
music-maker Jon Lester (Refuse Factory,
Radio: Tahiti) will play his last show under the
moniker Dis-Taste-R on Thursday, Dec. 16 at
Little Kings Shuffle Club. This isn't his last
show ever-—just the last one under that name.
He tends to change names every 10 years or
so, but he hasn't revealed his new one. Also
on the bill this night are Octa P.A., Smokedog
and The Subliminator. Things will kick off at
8:30 p.m., and I'd suggest familiarizing your
self with Lester's work by heading to www.
distaster.com and following the links to his
various Internet sites.
Grab It: The multi-faceted entertainment
hub Party Party Partners hit a high-water
mark last Christmas when The Dream Scene's
Christmas LP was released. The 12-song collec
tion of seasonal standards contained radically
and artfully reworked, yet incredibly respect
ful, versions as imagined by local producer/
musician Javier Morales. It was the surprise
treat of the year. Now, for this year's season,
PPP is giving it all away as a free download
with two new bonus tracks. Head to www.par-
typartypartners.com/xmas/xmas.html to get
your copy.
Watch It: A very nice slice of Athens history
was uploaded to YouTube a couple of weeks
ago. Titled Fatal Outlet, the film was shot
by the late Ted Hafer (Porn Orchard, The
Grit) in the early-mid 1990s here in town.
It's a humorous production and features a
veritable cast of Athens stars from this time
including Creston Spiers and Paul Trudeau
(Harvey Milk), Ballard Lesemann (Roosevelt),
Claudia Bechet (The Grit), Curtiss Pemice
(Porn Orchard), Larry Tenner (Magneto),
John Donnelly, Jennifer Harper (The Grit)
Dave Marr and Doug Hollingsworth (Star
Room Boys), Amber Valentine (Jucifer),
Deonna Mann, John Britt (Stunt Double),
Pat Valentine (Kincaid) and more. Hafer was
a video enthusiast
who produced at least
one other short film
(Apocalypse Warrior)
as well as a few music
videos. Fatal Outlet
rambles on a good bit
and is, at times, dif
ficult to follow, but it's
nice to see it again and
marvel at how everyone
looks like babies. The
footage also features
nice street scenes,
several shots inside the
original Jittery Joe's
on Washington Street
(where Max Canada
lives now) and, as a
whole, just takes me back. Many thanks are
due to Chunklet magazine's Henry Owings for
uploading this. See the whole thing over at
www.youtube.com/user/chunkletguy.
Short Takes: Ghostmeat Records will offi
cially release the new album, A Pre-Existing s
'Condition, by former Athenian David Dondero
next February, but you can get a copy now
via www.ghostmeat.com. Featured players
include the still-local William Tonks, Clay
Leverett, Ken WiU Morton and Ghostmeat
honcho Russ Hallauer. The guys in local band
Bombs Bombs Bombs have been busy beavers
this month working on what will be either an
EP or a full-length release. Whatever it will
be, it's scheduled for release early next year.
Listen to sketches of what the/ve done ever •
at www.facebook.com/BombsBombsBombs.
The surprise smile of the week comes courtesy
of acoustic act The Skipperdees. Composed
of twin sisters Catherine and Emily Backus,
the pair hail from Oak Ridge, TN, but make
their home in Athens at least during the
school year. While the Backus sisters may,
at first blush, seem like a run-of-the-mill
acoustic duo (mainly guitar and banjo with
an occasional electric guitar accompani
ment), there's a certain purity and honesty
in their sound that separates them from the
crowd. There's a definite mountain influence
here, too, which makes sense. Give 'em a
listen over at www.facebook.com/pages/The-
Skipperdees/127242153964101 but avoid the
live videos posted there because there's too
much wind noise. Go for the recorded tracks
instead.
Gordon Lamb threatsandpromises@fiagpole.com
TIE DREAM LIVES ON
The 2nd Annual Tribute
Concert for Jon Guthrie
September of 2009, Athens lost a
beloved musician when 26-year-old
I I ^1 Jon Guthrie lost control of his car
and veered off-rood into a creek. The prema
ture passing of such a talented and promising
young musician stunned the community.
Known for his kind heart and pure talent;
Guthrie was well known and welt loved in the
Athens music community. He began perform
ing live as a teenager and continued to find
kindred musical spirits throughout his life.
Even during his short time with us, Jon con
tributed to dozens of local bands, making an
impression on each of the people he met.
"His affable good nature, easy-going atti
tude and staggering talent made him one
of the town's most sought after players,"
Vigilantes of Love frontman Bill Mallon^e
wrote to Flagpole at the
time of Jon's passing. "It
was a privilege and an
honor to play with Jon."
In addition to VoL,
Guthrie played with Exit
86, Community Chaos and
many more, but perhaps
his best known roll was
as bassist in the Michael
Guthrie Band, where he
played alongside his father
Michael and uncle Herb.
He toured around the
world with the group and
truly held his own among
seasoned music veterans.
A few months after the
accident in 2009, father
Michael Guthrie put out a
call for acts to participate
in a tribute show. It was
not surprising that a con
siderable portion of the
Athens music scene rushed
forward to lend their
talents in honor of their
friend Jon.
The first "Living
the Dream' show last
December included many
of the bands that Guthrie had played with,
ranging from the heavier sounding Guff and
Choptop to the more pop-oriented Love
Tractor. Frontman Mike Richmond remembers
the first time he met and played with Guthrie.
"Here was this young guy, and he was
a great musician for his age, a really good
player," says Richmond. "He ended up play
ing with us on our Christmas album and was a
member of Love Tractor for a little bit."
For Richmond's band, it wasn't a question
of whether or not Love Tractor would like to
perform at the show. Like many of Jon's former
bandmates, Richmond held deep connections
to both Jon and his father, Michael.
"I've known his dad forever," says
Richmond. "He asked us to be a part of the
first tribute, which we did, and he asked us to
be a part of the show again this year."
"Living the Dream II" will have even more
bands than its predecessor. Joining Love
Tractor and the Michael Guthrie Band will be
four-piece punk band Karbomb, the*hardcore
Choptop, folksy bands Curley Maple and the
Bros. Marter, teenage upstarts Athens and
the hard-rocking Free Mountain. Adding to
tire fun will be the tattooed punk kids from
Bums Like Ffre, garage rockers Thunderchief
and the punk rockers with pop sensibility, So
It Goes. Seth Hendershot, The Rick Fowler
Band, Gabriela Mejias and Sleeper Years will
bring the tunes alongside a new collective
project named The Spinoffs.
The Spinoffs features musicians who are
connected to bands that the Guthries per
formed with in the past. Featuring Kathy Kirbo
of Heavy Feather/Jackpot City, Chris McKay of
the Critical Darlings, Ian Werden and Bryan J.
Howard of The HEAP, the band plays a mix of
rock and pop.
While Jon's loss still weighs heavily on the
hearts of many Athenians, this will not be a
melancholy event. The bands involved want
the night to be a celebration of Jon's life and
a reminder of all the things we sometimes
take for granted.
Tm not allowing it to be sad for me," says
McKay. "You can't function and go through life
that way. I didn't know Jon all that well per
sonally, but I can't imagine that he would've
wanted this show to be like that You've got
to live and play because we've all got limited
time here. And I think that's what we're going
for."
In the end, it all comes down to the love
of life and music that Jon held so dearly.
Though he may no longer be with us, his
music and his friendships will live on.
Adds McKay: "Its a celebration in Jon's
name, and it's really a celebration that we're
together, and that we are able to do this, and
we will continue to do this for as long as we
all possibly can."
.
Jordan Stepp
DECEMBFR 15,2010 • FlAGPOLE.COM 23