Club Notes

Bar Room To Star Room

originally published November 23, 2005

I make my way into Lunch Paper on Thursday, Nov. 17, where the new local indie-pop trio Ghost Dad The Robot is opening with Radiohead’s “Karma Police.” The lead vocalist refers to himself as 00 and has very smooth, engaging yet disaffected pop vocals a la David Gray. 00 is running the drum machine as well as pre-programmed and live keyboards and synth loops. The loungy pop continues, sounding like a more laid-back Postal Service, as the band trips through “Telecash,” “Laylow” and “ P.O.C.” and, apart from the obvious exception of the first song, I can’t tell if all of GDTR’s material is lightly re-crafted covers or surprisingly well-polished originals - or a combination of the two. While 00 seems to be the brains and voice of the outfit, 01 drops in appropriately shoegazey bass lines and occasional backing vocals, while Hugo Valentine fills the voids with deftly chiming rhythm guitar. The next song is Radiohead’s “Fake Plastic Trees,” which now has me wondering if I’m actually listening to a Radiohead cover band. Whatever the reality of the situation, I like what I’m hearing. The rest of the set plays out through the light dance of “No Cruising Zone,” but then a cover of the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams” blows my Radiohead theory and is followed by the intoxicating finale of “Ether.”

Well-worn local five-piece The Plague blows the hatch on the aforementioned atmosphere as the band cranks its amps up to 11 and embarks on a set of nostalgic, garagey, punk-edged, hard-rock tunes featuring dual vocalists Kirk Stigler and Link Soutar: one picking up the low end with a Jello Biafra-meets-Stan Ridgway tone, while the other rides high and wild along the lines of Ozzie Osborne and Bon Scott. Both vocalists also demonstrate the ability to swap these predefined roles with the former high-end-runner, now sounding more like Nick Cave. The end result bears resemblances to the Birthday Party, Talking Heads and Black Flag, to name but a few. What I have failed to say is that these five guys have resurrected their old-school punk-rock sound while staying true to the need for very strong and enigmatic vocals, which more than match the strength of Soutar and Steve West’s high-voltage, ball-busting, guitar-rock arrangements, Bob Fernandez’s solid, frenetic drums and killer bass work from Jaye McDonaldson.

Hailing from a little up the road from The Beast, 696 is tonight’s headliner. This off-the-hook Athens four-piece exhibits the more D.I.Y. style of old-school punk that always sounds like it could be a little tighter (but then, it ain’t real high-speed punk if it ain’t a little rough). Speaking of rough, 696’s vocal style is pretty growly and harsh, along the lines of the barely discernable satanic utterances usually found emanating from ‘90s death-metal bands. That having been said, as the set progresses, the songs find just a little vocal melody, with bucketloads of piss and vinegar and some deft guitar work.

It’s Townie Tailgate time again on Saturday night at the Caledonia Lounge. Picking up mid-show, local lads Summer Hymns have stripped back to a three-piece and are raising eyebrows amongst the fast-growing crowd. Personally, I’m finally coming to terms with the band’s insistence on delaying satisfaction. Zach Gresham teases with enticing melodies and fleeting hooks that make you believe you’re going all the way, but against everything that seems natural, the band pulls out before overcommitting to their pop sensibilities, saving us all from awkward regrets. Maybe one day Gresham will give in and write the perfect pop song.

The crowd congeals as The Mendoza Line strikes up with Dave Gerow (Ceiling Fan) on drums, Phil McArdle (Star Room Trio) on guitar, Paul Deppler on bass, and the glorious vocals of Tim Bracy and Shannon McArdle up front. The Mendoza Line doesn’t sound that different from their alter ego Slow Dazzle’s recent album, which embraces the sultry Patsy Cline feel of Holly Golightly. In this long-running incarnation, though, the mix of former and current Athenians alternates between sultry alt-country pop and upbeat alt-country rock.

The five-piece performs one of its Slow Dazzle songs, which runs over the crowd like warm spiced honey before letting loose with some solid rockabilly. McArdle’s and Bracy’s vocal stylings and open song structures portray shimmering country royalty tragically falling from lofty perches; the two vocalists exude deeply luscious and gloriously visceral balladry, interspersed with brooding and poetic Dylan-esque constraint.

Speaking of country royalty, the Star Room Trio finally comes on at 1:30 a.m. to a packed house. First, Dave Marr’s vocals are so impeccably dreamy as to completely transcend what is normally thought of as country in a similar boundary-crossing fashion as Johnny Cash, but in Marr’s case, sounding more like a smoother, richer and more swoon-worthy Waylon Jennings. Second, the resulting combination of Marr’s voice (and lyrical skill) with John Neff’s heavenly pedal steel and the silvery country chords emanating from Phil McArdle’s guitar is a deeply moving, soulful experience. Here’s to more “non-reunions.”

Ben Gerrard Ben Gerrard is a radio journalist and writer living and working in Athens. Club Notes is a weekly look at the local club scene.

Ben Gerrard

Ben Gerrard is a radio journalist and writer living and working in Athens. Club Notes is a weekly look at the local club scene.