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Saturday, April 23 @ sSjijjSr
CREATION • REVISION
DJRX
MUSIC
a 243 w. Washington st
a mon sat 4pm -2am
You rani hr. a real country unless you Ira a* a hcer
and an airline - il Im*I|xs if you have some. kind of a
football team, or some nuclear ueajions. but at tin*
very least you need a beer ."
'Frank Zappa
Wednesday April2
Thursday April 28
1st Floor Lamar Dodd
School of Art
w 9am - 5pm
erej,'****
i n 11
Fresh Seafood,
South Florida Style
ON SITE PARKING!
Free Wi-Fi
Event Planning
Private Room
Reservations Accepted
706-353-TUNA
414 N. Thomas St.
www.squareonefishco.com
SUNDAY
BRUNCH
llam-4pm
50C Oysters
All Day & All Night!
Prices occlude tax S gratuity
May not be combined with any other
offers or promotions
TAKING
GRADUATION
AND EASTER
BRUNCH
RESERVATIONS
NOW!
INTRODUCING ATHENS’ NEWEST TALENT
THE SUNUGHT ALCHEMISTS
Indie/Alt/Rock
Lineup: Hannah Zale, Derek Terry, Christian Gerdershmit,
Joe Shanoltz. Influences: Nirvana, Coldplay, Powderfinger, Ella
Fitzgerald, Alanis Morisette, Sublime, U2, The Verve, Kira and
the Kindred Spirits.
Derek and Christian originally collaborated as part of
Atlanta rock band Revo before joining forces with Joe
and Hannah last August. Hannah's roaring vocals are cer
tainly the spotlight on these alt-rock tunes; she's got the
kind of pipes you might expect to dominate on "American
Idol": soulful, rich and suited for the mainstream.
The band identifies itself as indie, and maybe it
embodies something of a DIY spirit, but musically this is
very straightahead stuff—like many of the listed influ
ences might suggest. There are demos up on www.mys-
pace.com/the_sunlight_alchemists, but I think the best
is yet to come from this group. The tracks online feel
sort of hesitant and restrained, without any really strong
hooks. But with time and focus, and more of the fiery
confidence I've seen in footage of its live shows, this
band could successfully ride on the '90s resurgence wave.
Next show: Wednesday, Apr. 20 @ Rye Bar
this group of mostly UGA Music Business Program students has
quickly found its niche in the jam and dance scene.
There's a good bit of synth, care of Matt Lewis (not to be
confused with Mat Lewis of Grape Soda fame), plus some real
funky bass grooves from Ben Consuegra which even venture
VESPOUNA
Pop/Rock/Post-Country
Lineup: Daniel Aaron, Chris Ellenburg, Kaitlin Jones, Holly
Belle, AJ Griffin, Daniel Ray, Eric Johnson. Shares members
with: Mikey Dwyer & the Starter Kits, Tony Tidwell, Southern
Bitch, Laminated Cat, Poncho Magic, Justin Evans, Kaitlin Jones
and the County Fair, f/stop, Timber and Andros. Influences:
Late '60s Beach Boys, Guided by Voices, Pemice Brothers,
Tindersticks, Palace, Leonard Cohen, Big Star, James Hunter.
A new band featuring many familiar faces, one Vespolina
show is almost like an Athens Americana Fest unto itself.
Timber frontman Daniel Aaron takes the lead here, backed by a
lush assortment of strings, pedal steel and keys.
"We all live in Athens and are trying to balance playing
music with work (Little Kings, 40 Watt, Gyro Wrap, Animal
Hospital, Junkman's) and the million other cocktail parties
that occur," says Aaron.
Vespolina is currently recording its debut LP, which should
be released Later this year. In the meantime, the band has a
few festivals lined up, including appearances at the actual
Athens Americana Fest plus AthFest, Slopfest and maybe the
Marigold Festival in Winterville. If you are looking for a sweet
mix of twangy pop and rock for your event, the band says
it's available for private parties and weddings, too. You can
find out more online at www.cowboyangelmusic.com or find
Vespolina on Facebook.
Next show: The Athens Americana Fest, Thursday, Apr. 28
@ Little Kings Shuffle Club
CHROMAZOKE
Electronic-fused Funk Rock
Lineup: Jordan White, Ben Consuegra, Matt Lewis, Danny
Zagoria. Influences: ST59, Disco Biscuits, Pearl Jam, Incubus,
Red Hot Chili Peppers, Depeche Mode
This band first made a blip on Flagpole's radar during the
Spring Showdown at the 40 Watt Club earlier this month,
which was immediately followed by three more gigs in town,
including a couple benefit shows at New Earth. It seems like
in disco territory on tracks like "And the Days Turn to Weeks"
before swirling out into more psychedelic waters. Jordan
White's vocals are sort of thin and quirky, giving the tunes
a more indie vibe than you'd expect, and his guitar adds an
alternative rock edge on tracks like "Fandango." Adding depth
and an organic pulse behind the samples is drummer Danny
Zagoria. If that sounds like your kind of groove, check out the
demos up at reverbnation.com/chromazone.
Next show: Thursday, May 5 @ Nowhere Bar
pretty bird
Ambient/Experimental
Lineup: david (he's a little extreme), jared (he's the quiet
one), jacob (he's the one that wants to have fun) and val
(she's the brains). Shares members with: Green Gerry and the
Gellyphish, Tree Spirit, Valerie and the Vaginas. Lowercase
names: intentional.
The crazy kids behind pretty bird really, really
want you know that they are unconventional. They
advertised a show at Go Bar by chalking up Flagpole's
sidewalk with childlike images and phrases (Ed.
request: please include a hopscotch board next time),
and when we sent them our Upstart questions, they
submitted their answers in the form of a spiral note
book filled with National Geographic photo collages,
frantic doodles and scrawled text... like the manic
creation of a middle schooler with severe A.D.D.
"The story of... pretty bird" says the cover in
neon green paint, and, as it turns out, if you squint
hard enough through all the jagged lines and gib
berish, there is some content to be gleaned from
these pages—most importantly, the band's website:
thebirdhouse.bandcamp.com. Here, finally, we get
a sense of what pretty bird is all about, and, truth
be told, the chaotic nature of the notebook is a fitting rep
resentation of the group's twisted sound collages. Haunting
chants interrupted by nonsensical yelps explode into a fury of
percussion on "treehouse," and the other tracks similarly offer
a strange mix of sloppy and tribal. Seemingly random text from
the notebook, like a page that features an image of Jesus with
the words "(God isn't real)" written in pink, makes as little
sense... as the repeated lyrics in "beally you'en be be." One
page of the notebook reads: "pretty bird started as a sort of
three-dimensional poetry. Now it's become something so much
more... terrifying." And these songs are a bit dizzying after
awhile... a fever dream in a bad drug trip...
But if the band comes off sounding a little looney, they also
sound like they're having a damn good time, and I imagine
that wild abandon would be contagious at a live show. Check
it out, if you dare. And, so you get the full experience, I've
scanned some excerpts from the journal and posted them up on
Flagpole.com.
Next show: Check Facebook for updates.
Michelle Gilzenrat music@flagpole.com
16 FLAGPOLE.COM-APRIL 20,2011
