"The Songs of Adam's House Cat"

Friday, December 1 @ Nuçi’s Space

originally published November 29, 2006

Chris McKay

Patterson Hood & Mike Cooley

You like “Buttholeville”? How about “Lookout Mountain” or that Alabama butt-whippin’ cover of Jim Carroll’s “People Who Died”? Well, they didn’t start out as part of the Drive-By Truckers’ repertoire, but rather within the abbreviated catalog of DBT co-captains Patterson Hood's and Mike Cooley’s earlier band, Adam’s House Cat. The Muscle Shoals-frequenting group, which also featured drummer Chuck Tremblay, along with bassists John Cahoon and Chris Quillen, was a rough-and-tumble precursor to the Truckers’ triple vocal/guitar attack that ran from 1985 to 1991.

“Both Chris and John have passed away. The last I heard, Chuck no longer plays due to health issues. We’ve tried to track him down for over two years, even hiring a private investigator to no avail,” says Hood of his former bandmates. Though a full-scale AHC reunion is impossible at this point, Hood and Cooley are nonetheless pairing up to resurrect the old Cat for a worthy cause. They’ll be rocking the Nuçi’s stage in a benefit show to assist a couple of longtime friends whose young daughter was recently diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.

"Since the breakup in ‘91," says Hood, "Cooley and I have done two sets of AHC songs, both at Lunch Paper in summer of 1999. This’ll be the third time to revisit these songs. Sabina Burke is the daughter of Jimmy Burke, an old dear friend from home who’s lived in Athens for over 10 years. The show is to raise money for Sabina's mounting healthcare costs. She has insurance, but they are threatening to stop coverage after her first round of chemo ends. Although AHC was electric and louder than hell, we’ll be playing the songs acoustic this time with Brad Morgan on the snare drum.”

Hood says that Adam’s House Cat, though not as developed as the DBT of today, truly had some great moments and many of them have likely gotten better given the years of seasoning in between. From the catchy “Runaway Train” (also heard in many a Truckers setlist) to the Chuck Berry-on-downers riffage of "Buttholeville," it’s sure to be a memorable pseudo-reunion held for all the right reasons. Advance tickets and donation info are available at www.nuci.org and www.simplysabina.com. A 7 p.m. magic performance for kids by "eco-entertainer" Steve Trash precedes the rock show.

"Underneath The Covers"

Friday, December 1 @ 40 Watt Club

originally published November 29, 2006

Bryan Poole

The Late B.P. Helium

The latest craze in Athens benefit concerts has been to put on shows centering around sets of cover songs, and why not? It's a way to catch local artists you may have seen several times (and perhaps are already tired of) lending their style to different material, and it's handy for drawing in fans of established stars who may not be familiar with the locals doing the interpreting. It worked earlier this year with the 40 Watt's "Gimme Shelter" and "Finest Worksongs" benefits, when local acts tackled the Rolling Stones and R.E.M., respectively.

This week's World AIDS Day benefit charts the same course, though its scope broadens somewhat to music of the late '60s and early '70s. Local songwriter J.S. Dillard and his band Honey will perform a set of T. Rex tunes, while The Late B.P. Helium rams through the back catalog of Wings and Paul McCartney. The '60s-pop connoisseurs in The Vinyl Strangers will tone things down a bit to offer up Cat Stevens tunes, and local songbird Madeline channels Lucinda Williams. A stripped-down set from the core members of Dark Meat closes things out, and the band will perform a fun start-to-finish rendition of a seminal album by one of the band's biggest influences, though in an effort to build suspense, all involved are keeping mum about exactly what it'll be - show up to find out, yeah?

DJ Mahogany spins tunes before, between and after the sets, and the local rollerderby squad Classic City Rollergirls will be on hand skating around. Tickets cost $8 in advance and $10 at the door, with money raised going to the MAC AIDS Fund and AIDS Athens. Advance tickets are available now at SchoolKids Records and Wuxtry Records, as well as the MAC Counter at the Belk department store at the Georgia Square Mall. Music starts at 10 p.m.

SeepeopleS

w/ Boombox

Wednesday, December 6 @ Georgia Theatre

originally published November 29, 2006

SeepeopleS

SeepeopleS, an Asheville, NC-based group fronted by guitarist-vocalist Will Bradford, was left of center long before the recent midterm elections proved the position fashionable. The cover of the band’s 2002 studio debut For the Good of the Nation (Rascal Records) features tanks, currency and a familiar looking politician (with censored eyes) addressing an unseen crowd with a clenched fist. While the cartoon statesman’s butchering of the English language is inaudible, SeepeopleS's position rings loud and clear as spokespeople(s) for the abandoned and disenfranchised - especially those who don’t mind interplanetary jams.

In early ‘05, Bradford & Co. continued the sonic, socio-politically inclined trend by releasing The Corn Syrup Conspiracy. The album fearlessly tackled topics like corporate greed and human naïveté in mostly ethereal (and extended) compositions with a subtle electronica undercurrent. The band is presently putting the finishing touches on upcoming full-length Apocalypse Cow: Volume One and plans to release it to the masses next year. Bradford says, “The songs are more focused. I don’t know if that’s because I’m more focused - my thoughts are arriving in byte-sized chunks these days. We’ve adopted a minimalist approach - the hip hop technique of finding one right sound, rather than layers of sounds. It’s a warmer, more organic record, but equally weird, if not weirder,” he laughs.

To spend any significant amount of time considering what might have been in the world of live music amounts to nothing more than mental masturbation. Grab a tissue. This evening’s SeepeopleS gig was originally supposed to be in support of none other than First Amendment, envelope-pushing, theatrical outfit GWAR. Unfortunately, the demons of rock and their stomach-turning stage show won’t be rolling through town tonight, which means that SeepeopleS's exposure gig has become a headlining slot.