Newspaper Page Text
Art” with Liza Stepanova, Badie
Khaleghian, Reinaldo Moya and
Kevork Mourad on Apr. 7 at 7 p.m.
"Conversation with Musician Val
Jeanty and Author Renee Gladman"
on Apr. 20 at 7 p.m. "Land, Water,
Sky: Photographers Address the
Environment on Earth Day 2021 ”
conversation with Tomiko Jones,
Jeff Rich and Marni Shindelman. on
Apr. 22 at 4 p.m. willson.uga.edu
HORT CLUB AT UGA SPRING
PLANT SALE (South Milledge
Greenhouse Complex, 2500 S.
Milledge Ave.) Shop for perennials,
woody plants, houseplants, succu
lents and veggies. Book a shopping
appointment online. Apr. 2-4,
10-11,8 a.m.-5 p.m. calendly.
com/hortclubuga/plantsale
LGBTQIA+ VIRTUAL ALPHABET
FAMILY GATHERING (Online)
This is a safe space for anyone on
the LGBTQIA+/TGQNB spectrum.
Fourth Sunday of every month,
6-8 p.m. uuathensga.org/justice/
welcoming-congregation
LIVE JAZZ (Porterhouse Grill) Enjoy
dinner and some smooth jazz.
Wednesdays, 6-9 p.m. www.porter
houseathens.com
MAXIM LANDO (UGA Performing
Arts Center) Pianist Maxim Lando
performs a tribute to late pianist
Chick Corea. Apr. 2, 7:30 p.m. $10
(online), $20-50 (in-person), pac.
uga.edu
MOVIES BY MOONLIGHT: DRIVE
IN MOVIE (Southeast Clarke Park)
Watch Angels in the Outfield on the
big screen. Apr. 9, 7:30 p.m. (Rain
date Apr. 16). RSVP. www.accgov.
com/myrec
SOUTHERN STAR STUDIO OPEN
GALLERY (Southern Star Studio)
SSS is a working collective ceram
ics studio established by Maria
Dondero in 2016. The gallery con
tains members' work. No more than
two people or a single group inside
at a time. Saturdays, 10 a.m.-4
p.m. southernstarstudioathens@
gmail.com
SPRING ACTIVITIES (Athens, GA)
A variety of activities in the arts,
environmental science, recreation,
sports and holiday events are
planned for adults and children.
Now enrolling, www.accgov.com/
leisure
UGARDEN PLANT SALE (2510
S. Milledge Ave.) Shop outdoors
for medicinal, edible, native and
dye plants from UGArden Herbs,
Cherokee Moon Mixology, Gently
Herbal Skincare, Mama Bath and
Body, MEplusTEA, Roseman’s
Remedies and Heartsong Herbs.
May 1, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. www.
ugardenherbs.com
UGA THEATRE (Online) The Girlhood
of Shakespeare's Heroines explores
the lived experiences of two of
Shakespeare's famous female char
acters. Apr. 19-21,8 p.m. www.
ugatheatre.com
WEST BROAD FARMERS MARKET
(300 S. Rocksprings St.) The mar
ket is open for shopping each week
from Sunday at 5 p.m. to Thursday
at 1 p.m., with a drive-through
(or walk/bike-through) pick-up on
Saturdays from 11:30 a.m.-1:30
p.m. wbfm.locahygrown.net
Kidstuff
ACC LIBRARY EVENTS (Athens-
Clarke County Library) Virtual
storytimes are offered via Facebook
weekdays at 10:30 a.m. www.face
book.com/athenschildrens
BOGART LIBRARY EVENTS (Online)
Virtual Storytimes are offered
weekdays at 10:30 a.m. “KnitLits
Virtual Knitting Group” meets Apr. 1
at 6 p.m. Virtual Booktalks featuring
picture books is held on Apr. 2 at
2 p.m."Virtual Science with Ms.
Kay” is held Apr. 7 at 3 p.m. www.
athenslibrary.org
FOREST FANTASY (Sandy Creek
Nature Center) Discover the magic
of forests by building fairy houses,
playing games and more. Register
by Apr. 1 at 5 p.m. Event held Apr.
2, 6-8 p.m. $2-5, www.accgov.
com/myrec
GIRLS ON THE RUN (Bishop Park,
Memorial Park or Virtual) This non
profit promotes social, emotional
and physical health of young girls.
A10-week program runs through
April, twice a week for 60-75 min
utes. www.girlsontherunnorthga.org
SUMMER CAMP SEASON
(Multiple Locations) The Athens-
Clarke County Leisure Services
Department hosts summer
camps for children and teens in
art, nature education, sports and
theater. Registration begins Apr.
10. Scholarships available, www.
accgov.com/camps, www.accgov.
com/myrec
TUTORING (Online) The Athens
Regional Library System is now
offering free, live online tutoring via
tutor.com for students K-12, plus
college students and adult learners.
Daily, 2-9 p.m. www.athenslibrary.
org
VIRTUAL SUMMER CAMPS (Tree-
house Kid and Craft) Summer camp
themes include woodland fairy and
gnomes, textile and fiber arts, cir
cus, pen pals, mini museum, rebel
girls, flower gardens and more.
Register online. $200/camp. www.
treehousekidandcraft.com
Support Groups
AL-ANON 12 STEP (Multiple
Locations) Recovery for people
affected by someone else's
drinking. Visit the website for a
calendar of electronic meetings
held throughout the week. www.
ga-al-anon.org
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
(Athens, GA) If you think you have
a problem with alcohol, call the
AA hotline or visit the website for
a schedule of meetings in Barrow,
Clarke, Jackson and Oconee
Counties. 706-389-4164, www.
athensaa.org
RECOVERY DHARMA (Recovery
Dharma) This peer-led support
group offers a Buddhist-inspired
path to recovery from any addiction.
Visit the website for info about
Zoom meetings. Thursdays, 7-8
p.m. FREE! www.athensrecovery
dharma.org
SEX ADDICTS ANONYMOUS
(Athens, GA) (Email for Location)
Athens Downtown SAA offers a
message of hope to anyone who
suffers from a compulsive sexual
behavior, www.athensdowntownsaa.
com
ZOOM INN (Online) Nugi's Space
holds weekly meetings on
Thursdays for people to drop by
and say hi virtually. Email lesly@
nuci.org
Word on the Street
CLASSIC CITY TOASTMASTERS
(Zoom) This is an encouraging
group for individuals who want to
develop their communication and
public speaking skills. Meetings
are held 2-3 times a month on
Thursday evenings. 706-202-7566
SUMMER STAFF (Athens, GA) The
Athens-Clarke County Leisure
Services Department is now hiring
for approximately 120 summer
positions including camp coun
selors, lifeguards and pool clerks.
www.accgov.com/jobs ©
threats & promises
Tears For The Dying’s Epitaph
PLUS, MORE MUSIC NEWS AND GOSSIP
By Gordon Lamb threatsandpromises@flagpole.com
HELL COMES TO YOUR HOUSE: Death rockers Tears For The
Dying just released a new album, Epitaph, that is undoubt
edly the long-running group’s most laser-focused and
satisfying work. This album features 17 songs, a handful of
which appeared on the March 2020 EP release Memories.
After nearly two decades as a project and band, Tears
For The Dying is finally getting some much-deserved rec
ognition, and the time it spent in relative, uh, darkness
seems like exactly the kind of woodshedding opportunity
it needed. All due praises
should go straight to founder
Adria Stembridge’s inbox
for keeping it alive so long.
The sheer aggression of this
album is nearly tangible, and
unlike other records by the
band, much of this is turned
outward. Key to Tears For
The Dying’s overall sound and
aesthetic is that they always
keep at least one foot solidly
planted in straight-up punk
and hardcore, as exemplified
on tracks like “ACAB” and “All
For Nothing.” That said, I’m
far more partial to the mood
ier and goth-ier material like
“Monochopsis,” “Deadweight”
and “Dazzle The Sun.” The record also features two remixes
by Tom Ashton (March Violets, touring member of Clan of
Xymox, guest player with Sisters of Mercy, et al.) so that’s
a nice bonus. Stream and purchase this over at tearsforthe
dying.bandcamp.com and hoist your flag at facebook.com/
TearsForTheDying.
GET UP, STAND UP: Camilla Sims, the artist and activist who
produces and performs under the name Convict Julie,
has stepped away from her signature smooth-tuned bal
lad-driven sound, at least for her newest single. The new
hardcore rap tune “Drive Bys On Tractors” tells the story
of her experiences during demonstrations in Atlanta and
Athens in 2020. Sims’ lyricism is both personal and polem
ical. It seems the single’s cover art—Sims with a gun in her
hand and her tongue poking out—might just be troll bait,
and anyone upset by it will have failed to notice its orange
tip which clearly identifies it as a toy. Musically, the track is
constructed with a flat-slap keyboard bass and guitar lines
and, vocally, Sims exhibits a sharp sense of clever rhyme
with a few well-placed couplets and unexpected lyrical
twists. It reminds me of more of early productions from the
likes of Rick Rubin than anything else, but with a notable
lack of samples. I can’t speak to the veracity of all that the
track contains, but the accompanying video does appear
to mistakenly identify Mayor Kelly Girtz as the person
who ordered tear gas dispersed during a May 31 protest in
downtown Athens. The mayor of Athens, unlike many other
cities, has no such power. (In fact, the order was given by
Police Chief Cleveland Spruill and approved by Assistant
Manager Deborah Lonon.) Significantly, though, this track
is quite unlikeable and deliberately so. It’s a sharply bristled
declaration of rage. It’s not friendly, welcoming nor particu
larly persuasive. Importantly,
too, it’s not supposed to be.
It’s not designed to rally
anyone to a particular side,
which is a key flaw so many
have when examining or
experiencing “protest” music.
There’s no requirement that
they attempt to be persua
sive. They are—by virtue of
their very name—affirmative
testaments, not negotia
tions. Their success or fail
ure, artistically or popularly,
is irrelevant. Sims is also a
key organizer of the Finley
Light Factory, the artists
collective at 393 N. Finley
Street which features perfor
mances, shared creative space and art markets. You can find
her whole catalog, including this new track, over on Spotify
and get more information via convictjulie.com.
NO ONE LAUGHS: As soon as I started playing the new EP
Emigrant by Kishi Bashi, I knew exactly where the ear-
worm in opening track “Wait For Springtime” came from.
It may have been unintentional, but slap me silly if that
hook isn’t straight from The Clash’s “Hitsville U.K.” The fact
remains, though, that Kishi Bashi has one of the best ears
for hooks and melodies in Athens, and he indeed makes
this his own on the gentle song. You can hear all this, too,
when the EP is released Apr. 2. While running a mere five
tracks, it collects his first released work since his last proper
album (2019’s Omoiyari) if we don’t count his massive
collection of score tracks from the Stillwater soundtrack.
It’s all much quieter than his immediately previous work,
but it’s not reserved at all. It’s actually quite stark, and its
bareness renders it all very up front. Further, it contains
pinpoint-perfect renditions of both Dolly Parton’s “Early
Morning Breeze” and Regina Spektor’s “Laughing With.”
I’d listen to this alone before playing it for anyone else, if
only to keep one’s own emotions in check. Set an alarm for
Friday and check it out at kishibashi.bandcamp.com. ©
Tears For The Dying
Beast Mode: Pound of Flesh EP (Independent) Though opening with a deli
cately arranged and nearly folkloric intro called "To Your Rest”—perhaps a mark of
guitarist and vocalist Corey Flowers, who holds a doctorate in guitar performance
and minor in music composition—Pound of Flesh does not waste any time before
lurching into its high-octane, ludicrously shred-tastic style. Drawing influences
from blackened thrash, melodic death metal and traditional heavy metal, tracks
such as "Frostbite” and "Arise” nail a combination of growling vocals, blast beat
drumming and tremolo picking that somehow sound cataclysmic yet weightless,
like being crushed into octillions of atoms and peacefully blasted back into outer
space. Essentially, the sheer technical proficiency of Flowers, guitarist Henry
Mitchell III, bassist Cameron Yohr and drummer Guido Hrovat proves the artistic merit of the genre by creating such
densely flourished and dizzying melodies. Pound of Flesh will be officially released on Apr. 2, and Akademia Brewing
Company will host an outdoor listening party on Apr. 3 from 2-6 p.m. To celebrate the occasion, the brewery will also
release its second Beast Mode-inspired concoction, a hazy blood orange IPA that shares a name and album/label
artwork with the EP. In addition to CDs, a limited run of cassette tapes will be released through local heavy metal
record shop Shadebeast’s "Noir” series. [Jessica Smith]
MARCH 31, 2021 | FLAGPOLE.COM 13