originally published March 21, 2007

Hello people and welcome to "Threats & Promises: Short Pants Edition." Since we’ve sprung forward now and have to deal with more sunlight every day, there’s no way I’m keeping my pale gams locked up inside blue jeans all the livelong day! So, when you see that blinding light coming from the back of the club, you’ll know I’m there. That said, let’s dive into this week’s news…

The Who, The What, The Where, Etc.: We're gonna keep telling you about this til you get it!: the completely brand-spanking-new online Flagpole Athens Music Directory is up and running! This vital resource is where you'll find contact info for local bands, screenprinters, venues, attorneys, record labels, designers, producers and more! Constantly up-to-date (whenever you've got changes, you can edit your listings instantly), the site also features MP3s, photos and more! Hit up www.flagpole.com/MusicDirectory and all your questions, worries, prayers and hopes will be answered.

Godspeed You! Redheaded Emperor: Sleepy Horses guitarist and main man Nic Goodson is back in Athens and back to performing. Goodson has been recovering for the past few months back home in Texas following a chemically induced near-death experience. The damage to his body was so severe that the jury is still out on whether he has permanent nerve damage, but Goodson did lose the use of his legs for several weeks and has only recently begun to walk again. While his recovery is to be a long and slow one, and not without its share of pain, Goodson says he's committed to getting back to Athens and playing music again. To this end, he’ll be setting up over at Mercury Lounge on Thursday, Mar. 22 for a solo set of material with Chip McKenzie and Coy King also on the bill. So go see him, give him a hand, a hug and welcome him back.

New Band Debut: A couple of former members of Sleepy Horses will debut their new band over at Little Kings on Saturday, Mar. 24. Comprised of Brandi Goodson and Kyle Harris (both ex-Sleepy Horses) along with Matt Hudgins (Pride Parade, Visitations, ex-Brown Frown) and Bubba McDonald (Pride Parade, ex-Brown Frown), the band is named The Diamond Center . The group reports its sound is a psychedelic garage sound with a bit of country thrown in. Also on the bill this night is Diego Catalan , the new solo project by Mother Jackson member Jim Wilson , and Mother Jackson itself performing in an “acoustic micro-orchestra” formation.

Stock Up, Help Out: Athens audiences, pay heed! Heading to the Georgia Theatre any time soon? Audiences are encouraged to bring two cans of food to each show they attend at the Georgia Theatre, "starting with the Avett Brothers on Mar. 23 and running through the Truckers shows" in April, according to Joshua Stack of Panic Fans For Food . The food drive aims to "feed more of Athens' and North Georgia's hungry." Visit www.panicfansforfood.com for more info.

Getting Ill: WUOG 90.5 FM , its program " The Halftime Hip Hop Show " and the Committee for Black Cultural Programming of UGA's University Union have joined forces to present the emcee battle " Survival Of The Illest, Vol. 1 ." The stated goal of the promoters is to have more hip-hop-related events on the UGA campus, and this event is to “plant the seed,” so to speak. Taking place at the Tate Center on Wednesday, Mar. 28, the event is part of the annual “Week of Soul” also sponsored by CBCP. It’s also free for anyone who wants to attend. And any emcees eager to sign up and battle, particularly those college students reading this, please drop an email to halftimehiphop@gmail.com and jump on it.

New Game In Town: Athens has a new recording studio in the form of Odd Squad Studios . Appropriately named given its location on Odd Street, the fully digital studio is the realized dream of owner Dylan Roth who moved to Athens last year. The “fully-digital” aspect applies to more than mere recording, however, as the studio is equipped to do live web broadcasts during recording. It also boasts a huge amount of drum gear and a whole bunch of fancy, brand-name equipment that I am pretty unfamiliar with, but studio hounds will probably drool over. Give ‘em a look over at www.oddsquadentertainment.com.

Follow The Rules: Widespread Panic is particularly sensitive about folks scalping tickets, and especially so in its own hometown, so for the band's upcoming shows at the Classic Center , a few safeguards have been put in place. First, no hard tickets are sold upfront at all. Second, what you receive after purchase is a ticket voucher which you have to redeem on the day of the show, and only the person whose name is used with the initial order can pick them up. Third, tickets will only be sold over the phone or online. Fourth, there is a strict limit of two tickets per person, per night and per transaction. Meaning if you want to buy tickets for more than one night, you must place a separate order for each additional night. If this amount of hoop-jumping doesn’t make you want to say “aw, fuck it,” then the good news is that ticket sales begin Saturday, March 24 at 10 a.m. and can be ordered via phone at 706-357-4444 or 800-864-4160, or online at www.classiccenter.com. The scheduled shows are for Apr. 23, 24 and 25 and tickets will run you $42.50 each.

New Album In The Works: Warner Brothers Records reports that R.E.M. will begin working on a new album this spring with producer Jacknife Lee who has worked with U2, Snow Patrol and Bloc Party. Lee was also the guitarist for the criminally underappreciated Irish band Compulsion back in the 1990s. This is the band's first album of new work since 2004’s Around the Sun , and the recording time comes hot on the heels of the band's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame . I’m pretty stoked about it. As always, for more information, please see www.remhq.com.

An Athens Original: Long before anyone ever thought of cashing in by rehashing the 1980s (read: The Killers, Interpol, etc.), Athens was home to a true believer named Christian Engel who fearlessly led his band The Girl Pool through gig after gig (and a protracted email battle with former Flagpole staffer Russ Hallauer which was published in full) with its music inspired by Echo & The Bunnymen, Siouxsie & The Banshees and others. At any rate, eventually Engel left town for the Northeast and has resurfaced some eight years later with his band Eisdrive , which is very much in the vein of Front 242 and, to a lesser extent, Nitzer Ebb. Although probably only a few folks, me included, will remember his efforts here in town, that’s enough to make me want to mention him in these pages and send y’all over toward www.myspace.com/eisdrive.

Calendar Shift: So the local post-rock band Maserati had to cancel its Athens and Atlanta shows originally planned for last week, right before heading out on a current tour of Germany, France and the Czech Republic. No worries, though; the band reports it's booked two homecoming shows at The EARL and the 40 Watt Club on June 14 and June 15, respectively. Word.

Okay, be good. Or not. Whatever. Just keep your news coming in and always mention either Threats & Promises or my name in the subject line of all emails. Call me the breeze 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