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Yallweh Makes All-Star Debut, Sailor Winters Returns and More Music News


BACK IN THE RING: Former Athenian Kemp Stroble (Ya’al H’ush, Part Bear, Hot Fudge) has assembled a veritable all-star group of locals to be the live band for his new project Yallweh. Well, it’s new to us. In reality, its roots stretch back to May 2015 and include several sessions with different players (including Heather McIntosh and Charlie Estes) in a couple of different states, and Joel Hatstat brought it all home with his mastering prowess. The live band is made up of Andy Gonzales (Marshmallow Coast), Kris Deason (Hot Fudge), Paul Trudeau (Harvey Milk), John Lukas (Hot Fudge) and Stroble. This band celebrates its debut release Saturday, July 15 at Little Kings Shuffle Club, with Outersea, Donny Knottsville and Harry Carey midwifing it all. Check out an exclusive track from the self-titled album on Homedrone.

SAIL ON: It’s been a year since we heard from Sailor Winters (aka Ryan Cox), and previous to that self-titled 2016 release, it had been nine years since we’d heard any new music from him. The new full-length Oxen Moon is a fine addition to an already impressive catalog. Significantly, Cox has slowly moved away from painting the world exclusively in black noise (although he maintains a record label named exactly that), and allowed slight bouts of discernible melody to lie on top of his multi-textured electronic experiments. In the previous decade, he seemed unstoppable, and it’s so nice to have him back on top of his game. Don’t look for this album to be wildly out of proportion if you’re familiar with Sailor Winters’ earlier output, but if you’re new to all this, it’ll function just fine as a top stair from which to make your descent into his history. Check it out at stickfigurerecordings.bandcamp.com and sailorwinters.bandcamp.com.

PACE YOURSELF: The full lineup for SlopFest 2017 is finalized. The event, a benefit for the Athens Girls Rock Camp, runs July 20–23, with the first three nights at Little Kings and the fourth, at Hi-Lo Lounge. The first night is free, and full weekend wristbands are a mere $10 (or you can pay five bucks a night). Thursday features Cabbage Looper, Blue Bodies, Jackson Harem, Mother the Car, V-8 Death Car and Burns Like Fire. Friday will have Fart Jar, CWOHL, Maximum Busy Muscle, Shehehe, Apparition, Twinki, Lingua Franca, Nurse, Illegal Drugs, Vincas and DJs Lord Bitter and Lozo. Saturday features Danger Bucket, The Gumps, The Fuzzlers, Cuddlefish, Space Dungeon with Dope Knife, Tabloid, Hannie and the Slobs, Karbomb, The Powder Room, Motherfucker and a live drum/DJ set from Luxury Vehicle. Sunday brunch at Hi-Lo features DJ Mahogany easing you into the day, then Marathon States, Bad Idols, Hunger Anthem, The Joy Kills and Seagulls at night. Whew!

DO NOT MISS: Kristine Leschper (Mothers) will play her last show in Athens for a long time Wednesday, July 12 at the Caledonia Lounge. She’s shoving off to Philadelphia, and let’s face it, we can’t compete with the Liberty Bell, Cheez Whiz sandwiches and the Ben Franklin Bridge. Leschper will play a solo set, which Mothers fans of yore will remember as distinctly special occurrences, so show up on time, don’t complain about it costing $7 (or $9 if you’re age 18–20), and settle in for a nice night. Also on the bill are Group Stretching, Dagmar Vork and Big Hart. For more information, see facebook.com/nestingbehavior.

A PLACE OF ONE’S OWN: Creature Comforts Brewery will host its next Industry Appreciation Night Monday, July 17 at 5 p.m. Featured entertainment is courtesy of Cocktail Hour: The Wedding Band and DJ Mahogany. As per usual, this event is a pat on the back to all food and beverage service-industry workers. All ya gotta do is provide proof of employment in said area, and you get in free. And you can bring your non-employee, tag-along pals with you, but they’re gonna have to throw down the standard $14 to drink.

MESS WITH THE BULL, YOU GET THE HORNS: Athens metal band Jet Engine Dragons have steadily worked their collective tail off over the past few years, and the result is the group’s new album, Ashes of Anthemusa. Largely death metal but with highly melodic flashes, the album runs nine tracks. For the most part, it’s a totally competent and confident release, and the only complaint I have is I wish the vocals, which often employ a back-and-forth between guitarist Corey Flowers and keyboardist Jonathan Lane, were more distorted. There’s just something odd and a little off-putting about being able to hear the lyrics pretty clearly even through guttural vocalization. Check it out at jetenginedragons.bandcamp.com.

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