originally published February 14, 2007

Jumping in at the deep end this week. So, grab your goggles and start swimming below

Just Do It: The 2007 Flagpole Athens Music Directory wants your information! Truth be told, you want to be in it, too, as it lists everything from bands to record stores to CD manufacturers to everything else possibly associated with Athens music, including attorneys and accountants. So, head to www.flagpole.com and either submit your new info or update your current listing!

All Signs Point To Yes: Elf Power is currently ensconced inside the home of Vic Chesnutt working on collaborative recordings that may result in an album. Sam Mixon (ex-Porn Orchard, Sunshine Fix) and Curtiss Pernice (ex-Porn Orchard, Dimes), longtime Chesnutt collaborators, have also been sitting in on the sessions. Elf Power dude Andrew Rieger says the sessions, which are almost complete musically and are headed toward adding vocals any day now, will probably be released, but nothing is decided as to when or on what label. You heard it here first!

Maybe Someone Will See This Before It Expires: Its always risky writing about something featured on a Tuesday since, technically, Flagpole publishes on Wednesday morning. But, most of the time our papers begin to hit the streets in the late afternoon/ early evening hours of Tuesday, so lets give this a shot for those of you eager to pick up the paper ASAP. Local promotional collective Athfactor Entertainment will present the interesting (but unfortunately named) Taste Me Tuesday: A Pre-Valentines Day Party at Tasty World on Tuesday, Feb. 13, and will feature poetry by Celest and Amaris, and hip-hop music by Ben Stevens, F.L.Y. and Disha. Ladies are admitted free (which is always a nice touch where Athfactor's events are concerned) and guys need only pay $2. The show runs from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. - the first half is more of a social gathering, the second more of a dance party with the live performance sandwiched in the middle - and music is provided all night long by the Official Tissue Music Group.

A Soldier Returns: A man that has more than done his duty for the Athens music scene will return to play a solo show at the Flicker Theatre & Bar on Thursday, Feb. 15. Eric Sales will open for Don Chambers on this night and, while Ive no doubt the place should be packed, a little history wouldnt hurt: Sales spent the bulk of the 1980s playing with Athens punk outfit The Primates and then spent seven years with Jack Logan in Liquor Cabinet while also spending four years with the David Barbe-fronted band Buzz Hungry. He quit playing in bands back in 1997 to concentrate on grown-up things like family and work, but has recently begun playing again - his return to Athens is a welcome one. The show starts at 8:30 p.m.

New Newness: Swing by Little Kings on Friday, Feb. 17 to check out the return of Panda, the Sanni Baumgärtner-led pop band that charmed audiences during AthFest last summer. The Berlin/ local band will soon release a CD recorded last year, and word is that the opening act will be a new project from Tim Nackashi of Empire State.

Copy That: On Monday, Feb. 19, the University of Georgia will host an event called "Negativland: Adventures in Illegal Art" which will feature a 90-minute film and storytelling presentation by Mark Hosler, founding member of Negativland. Who? Most famous for getting sued by Island Records for their U2 single, Negativland has spent 25 years as a thorn in the side of the corporate media and entertainment "biz," blurring the lines between music, performance art, social commentary, culture jamming, hoaxes, media pranks and more. The group was the subject of the 1995 documentary Sonic Outlaws. Hosler's multi-media presentation will tackle the creative process in an age of intellectual property law. A Q&A session follows, and the event runs from 4 to 6 p.m. in Room 101 of the Student Learning Center. The presentation's free and open to the public, and the promoter promises "no lawyers were harmed in the making of this event."

Brand New: Local biological engineer and musician Dan Geller (I Am The World Trade Center, USSR) is now one-third of state-boundary-crossing band The Ruby Isle. Geller joins his lifelong pal - and popular tunesmith in his own right - Mark Mallman and drummer Aaron Lemay. Musically, the band is keyboard-heavy but features a super-processed, 1980s guitar sound on at least one of its very few recorded tracks (Into The Black). The Ruby Isle will make its live debut at this year's South By Southwest festival in Austin, TX next month. More info available over at www.myspace.com/rubyisle.

Spotlights: A local startup television show named "Hip-Hop World" is looking for a host. The show, which highlights travel and music, will be shot in late spring. Dimitri Paras, a University of Georgia student involved in the show's creation, says the show will be shopped to channels like MTV, VH1, BET and the Travel Channel, and that the producers prefer university juniors and seniors or young professionals. Open auditions will be held at Hot Corner Coffee on Thursday, Feb. 15, 37 p.m.

On Sale Now: Athens station WUGA 91.7/ 97.9 FM will host three local bands over at UGAs Legion Field for a night of springtime fun. Featured bands are Modern Skirts, the Packway Handle Band and Hope For Agoldensummer. Part of the proceeds from this show will benefit WUGA and the UGA Music Business Program. The show is early, starting at 6 p.m., and tickets are already on sale now for $10 a pop. For more information, please see www.wuga.org.

Hate Never Sounded So Good: Music Hates You has finished recording its side of an upcoming split with metal band Zoroaster, with which the group shared the bill at the Caledonia last week. Although no one could tell me which label this thing was coming out on, all concerned seem excited about it. The band did the tracks over at Leadbelly Studios with engineer Matt Washburn, whose past clients include Mastodon, Withered and Pupil Dilate. Speaking of which, I had a conversation with a friend during the Mastodon show at the 40 Watt a couple of weeks back and we both agreed that while Mastodon is impressively massive and generally great, Music Hates You puts on a much better and dynamic live show. So, yeah. Take that!

You know Valentines Day is a made-up thing, right? Keep your news coming in and always mention either Threats & Promises or my name in the subject line of all emails. Roy Orbison sang it for the lonely via email to music@flagpole.com, voicemail at 706-549-9523, ext. 203, or by post at P.O. Box 1027, Athens, GA 30603.

Gordon Lamb