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' CD 1
RELEASE
, PARTY j
285 W Washington St Athens GA • Coll 706-549-7871 tor Show Updates
CHEAP DRINK SPECIALS EVERY NIGHT BEFORE 11PM • 18 + UP
WEDNESDAY, MAY 18
doors open at 8pm*
FRIDAY, MAY 27
40 WATT & NOMAD ARTISTS PRESENT
RYAN BINGHAM P
& the dead horses
THE AMERICANS
doors open at 9pm* BE* .
SATURDAY. MAY 28
TV ELASTIC SKSJLINE
SWEET KNIEVEL
DIALECT TRIO
*
doors open at 9pm
THURSDAY, JUNE 2
doors open at 9pm
FRIDAY. JUNE 3
YYladelme
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THE GOONS
THE PLAGUE
doors open at 8pm
All Shows 18 and up • + $2 for Under 21
Advance Tix Available at Schoolkids Records
and Wuxtry Records
Advance Tix Sold at www.40watt.com
Come meet our
wonderfully awesome
dogs In the flesh!
Be sure to email us,
adopt.aatnettscattinerescue.com.
if you want to meet a specific dog,
so we can be sure they will be there.
Date: Saturday, May 21
Time: 10:30 am to 12:00 pm
Place: Pawtropoiis
For more information, please visit:
www.athenscaninerescue.com
enafiigans ^ ^
alon
706-548-1115
1037 Baxter Street, Suite A
Open Monday through Saturday
TEH PINS J
TAVERN d
Bowling • Food • Spirits
* Late Night
++ Bowling *
* Speeial
Saturday,
■ay 21
KanaoKe
at the
Classic City PrMay & Saturday Night
R oiw.s R
sfre*
MIRTy
Week Night Bowling
Bowl from 10pm-12 am
for the price of 1 hoar!
(not vaM with any other oftef)
Mon-Thur 4pm-12am • Fri3pm-2am
Sat 12pm-2am • Sun 12pm-12am
2451 Jefferson Rd.
706-546-8090
TeNMN8TaveRN.COM
Private Parties Available
THURSDAY meur is
AT TRANSMIT
POWNTOWN
EARTH-FRIENDLY • WATER-WISE
ORGANIC GARDENING
fl
SOME GROW
asWhobbv,
we 1 poTTt k fqr
A LIVING!
ra
HYDROPONICS
CSS?2011 Open Pollinated Heirloom Organic Seeds
Earthboxes and Earthbox stackable planters
Propagation lighting for seeds
Heatmats and thermostats for seed starting
Organic fertilizers and amendments for gardens
Composters and wormbins
Hobby greenhouses and accessories
www.FloraHydroponics.com • Mon-Sat 10am-6pm
Now Open in Atlanta! Athens • 195 Paradise Blvd.
1239 Fowler St. Behind Terrapin Brewery
404-532-0001
706-353-2223
W ith roots tracing back to 19th century Appalachia,
bluegrass developed as an exemplar of musical virtuos
ity in the early 20th century and gained commercial
popularity in the late 1940s. This musical style has spawned
countless subgenres and influenced several modes of popular
music. Still, traditional bluegrass has managed to remain a
well-loved, often commercially successful genre. Today, blue
grass purists continue to preserve that timeless sound.
Case-in-point: The Welfare Liners. The band—featuring Rob
Keller on vocals and bass fiddle, Wayne Wilson on vocals and
banjo, Russ Hallauer on mandolin, Mark Cunningham on gui
tar and Adam Poulin on fiddle—formed in spring of 2010 and
approaches its genre quite conservatively. “We're pretty hard
core bluegrass," says Keller. “We're not big on newgrass, and
we don't really modernize much."
The band's self-titled debut EP, scheduled for a May 17
release, consists of five covers and only one original song. The
opening track, "Terrapin Beer" is a ballad of praise for the local
brewery—executed traditionally and recently selected to be
part of the 2011 AthFest compilation. “[It's] kind of a commer
cial song with an old time feel," says Keller. “It might not work
for a rock band, but it's cool for a bluegrass band to play a
song like that. Even better is that it's a local business." Keller
also intimates that his inspiration to pen the song struck after
he drank a six-pack of Hopsecutioner—a means of inspiration
probably shared by several other local artists.
Of the traditional bluegrass songs the band has recorded
and performed live, vocalist/banjoist Wayne Wilson says, "We
tend to try and do it the way they originally did it" However,
there are ways in which Welfare Liners try to break from the
fold. "We stray away from the obvious bluegrass standards and
delve [into] more obscure songs," says Keller.
Keller notes that Welfare Liners fans can expect to hear
more original material in the future. "I'm just getting back
into songwriting—they're bluegrass songs, like The Stanley
Brothers, The Louvin Brothers, Jim and Jesse... probably the
three most famous brother harmony bands from the '40s and
'50s."
While Keller and Wilson are not related, the pair are able to
mimic those "brother harmonies" beautifully—with one singing
lead vocals and the other singing tenor, the resulting mix is
that classic bluegrass "high lonesome" sound.
Whatever their familial affiliations may be, this band sounds
authentically traditional, and they're resolute in their effort
to "keep these old songs alive." Bluegrass has thrived for so
long because people love it—a solid traditional bluegrass band
is impressive by any standard, entertaining by most, and still
revered as music's pinnacle by many.
When The Welfare Liners celebrate their CD release on May
19, they'll be opening for a group of a different breed: Dawes.
Based out of L.A., Dawes will bring a brand of indie-folk-rock
strikingly different from The Welfare Liners' approach.
Dawes is touring to promote its sophomore album Nothing
Is Wrong. The band's official bio quotes singer/guitarist Taylor
Goldsmith as saying, "The first record was written for a band
that wanted to be a band, the second record was written by a
band that was able to get on stage and explore things that we
hadn't explored yet."
The pairing of Dawes and The Welfare Liners—one based
on preservation, the other on exploration—should make for an
interesting show.
Kevin Craig
14 FLAGPOLE.COM-MAY 18, 2011
I
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KRISTIN KELLER