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PHOOUCCOBV WINDSTORM AND OK PRODUCTIONS
MUSIC NEWS AND GOSSIP
Whistle As The Wind Blows: R.E.H. is over. Or,
in the parlance of the band itself, the guys
have decided “to call it a day.“ This announce
ment came via a simple posting on the band's
website last Wednesday, albeit one that
rocketed around the world with pretty amaz
ing speed. While not a total surprise—there's
been quiet scuttlebutt suggesting this exact
thing for almost a year now—the news still
came as a blow to the identity of the Athens
music scene which has had R.E.M. as a sort
of cultural backbone for the past 31 years.
Warner Brothers will release what is described
as a “career spanning* compilation on Nov.
15 titled Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part
Garbage: 1982-2011, named so after Peter
Buck's famous description of R.E.M. The
group's popular fan club will shut down,
and this year's Christmas single and holiday
package will be the last such release from the
band. It's impossible to quantify in a single
paragraph the enormity of the band's contri
bution to our town. Suffice it for now to say
that our common sense of what constitutes
the Athens landscape of music, art, politics,
historic preservation, etc. owes a massive debt
to R.E.M. Both as citizens and a professional
organization, R.E.M. was always will
ing to work from where they were to
do what they could and never forgot
that all politics is local. Often cred
ited, and not erroneously, with being
! the single most important band dur
ing the college radio revolution of the
! 1980s, the band was a multi-platinum
international success less than a
decade after forming. By the time '90s
"alternative rock" swept the world
R.E.M. were the form's most respected
elder statesmen. After drummer Bill
Berry left the group in 1997, Michael
Stipe, Mike Mijls and Peter Buck aug
mented the group with other players
both live and in the studio, but there
was never any mistaking who was call
ing the shots or writing the songs.
It would be very easy to continue on
citing facts and memories and attrib
uting saint-like status to R.E.M., but,
to steal a line from Collapse Into Now,
"We'll leave the allegory to a different Bible
story" and just say a simple thank you directly
to the band. So, thanks R.E.M., for every
thing. To read the band's official statement,
please see www.remhq.com.
Quietly Superb: Supergroup, of sorts,
Nightskys released a cool little record almost
completely under the radar last month. The
band is composed of Steven Trimmer and
Eddie Whelan, both of Eddie the Wheel,
along with Dena Zilber (El Hollin) and Ruby
Kendrick. Titled Open Windows, the album is
a sweet 12 tracks of unpretentious synth-pop
that feel off-the-cuff yet are sensationally
well arranged. It's easily running neck and
j neck with Tunabunny's new one as my favorite
record of the last month. Get it for free over
at www.nightskys.bandcamp.com.
The Heart of Rock and Roll: Speaking of the
| aforementioned Tunabunny, that band is out
on the road celebrating the release of its new
est LP, Minima Morolia, which came out on
HHBTM Records a few weeks ago. It's a short
jaunt up the East Coast and then to Chicago
before winding things down in Cleveland, OH.
They'll be back a few days after you read this,
so ask 'em how it went! For more information,
please see www.tunabunny.tumblr.com or
www.facebook.com/Tunabunny.
V He Ain't Wrong, He's Just Different: Matt
Hudgins & His Shit-Hot Country Band
released their new album, Hit Makers Vol. 1,
last week via Bandcamp.com. The 10-track
album features, of course, the band's signature
early '70s-style outlaw country sound with
occasionally comical lyrics, and the cover art
is a beautiful portrait of Matt Hudgins and
his patriotic beard. The whole thing can be
yours for $5, which is less than you lost on
the barroom floor last night. Head to www.
shithotcountryband.bandcamp.com and get
your copy.
Will and Presentation: The philosophy depart
ment at UGA will host its Interdisciplinary
Conference on Pop Culture on Saturday, Oct.
29. Researchers, faculty and graduate students
from all academic departments are encouraged
to submit paper abstracts showing how their
research is "inspired by and is clearly dem
onstrated in a variety of media, such as lit
erature, film, music and other forms of visual
art." The deadline for submitting abstracts is
Saturday, C t. 1. The conference is planned as
a multimedia event, so it's cool to use, urn,
multiple media in your presentation, but you
should be prepared to have your time in front
of everyone last 20-30 minutes with Q&A time
after that. While this is a UGA-centered aca
demic conference, organizer Luke Johnson—
himself a veteran player—says collaborations
with Athens artists and musicians are highly
encouraged. So, drop your abstracts to him via
ljo@uga.edu; that's also the best way to ask
any questions you might have.
Gather Your Bros, Bud, While Ye May: If you
missed out on getting tickets for Widespread
Panic's hometown Toys for Tots benefit show
at the Georgia Theatre, you can still catch
the show. HDNet will broadcast the show live
Sunday, Oct. 9 at 8 p.m. Although the tick
ets for the benefit show were far from cheap
($151 and S501), the event was an easy
sell-out, and it's for an awesome cause, so
no one should complain about anything. For
more information on HDNet Concerts, head to
www.facebook.com/HDNetConcerts. And for all
your Widespread Panic needs, continue to visit
www.widespreadpanic.com.
Gordon Lamb lhrealsandpromises@flagpole.com
Matt Hudgins & His Shit-Hot Country Band released their new
album, Hit Makers Vol. I.
14 FLAGPOLE.COM-SEPTEMBER 28, 2011
