FOR WHAT IT’S WORTH: The hook-oriented alt-rock/pop-punk dudes in Murder The Mood will celebrate the release of the group’s newest album Perks of Losing Sleep Friday, Sept. 29 at Buvez. Also on the bill are Way Past Cool, Choir Of Babble and Grudgestep. Now in existence for just about a decade, the band has fully come into its own, and this new album is chock full of the aforementioned hooks without ever sacrificing key heavy riffage. For example, opening track “State Of Emergency” starts out with a Metallica-style slow intro but quickly graduates. Similarly, albeit without the drag of an intro, the songs “Cavalier,” “Nowhere To Go” and “Haunt Your Soul” could each slide easily onto the next mixtape you’re making. No, there’s nothing groundbreaking here, nor is it perfect, but it’s pretty dang solid, and I appreciate its running length being a tasteful nine songs. Find this on all major streaming services, and follow along at facebook.com/followmtm.
BLACK CELEBRATION: Athens cornerstone heavy metal label, shop, promotions and booking machine, and hangout spot Shadebeast is going to celebrate its sixth anniversary with a double-dip of shows Friday, Sept. 29 and Saturday, Sept. 30. Both happen at Flicker Theatre & Bar, and each costs $15 per night or $25 for a two-day pass. Friday features Bog Monkey, EMBR and Doomsday Profit and Saturday’s show features Holy Ghost Tabernacle Choir, 20 Wall Tombstone and Horseburner. Also, limited edition anniversary T-shirts are available now, but reportedly moving very quickly. Shadebeast’s physical shop can be visited in person on Saturdays between 11 a.m.–6 p.m. The shop is located at 149 Oneta St., Suite 6c3. Ya know, even keeping a band alive for six years is a major feat, much less an ongoing concern with the breadth of Shadebeast. These dudes are truly the standard bearers for what has traditionally been an underserved and ignored part of our music scene, although over the past decade or so that has improved substantially, thanks in no small part to them. All congratulations are due. For more information, please see facebook.com/shadebeastofficial and shadebeast.com.
GOOD PEOPLE DOING GOOD THINGS: The Sam Holt Band recently donated over $4,000 to the Mikey Houser Pre-Amped Music Program at Nuçi’s Space. The funds were raised through the sale of posters and T-shirts designed by JT Lucchessi. Additional funds were donated by technology integration and consulting company TSAV. This support is quite special for the band, as Sam Holt (Outformation) was guitar tech to the late Michael Houser (Widespread Panic) and sought his own path in making music at Houser’s insistence. This program is specifically for fourth and fifth grade students to explore musical instruments and receive instruction from a select group of musicians and educators. There is much more information available, too, which I just plainly don’t have the space to explore here. So please see for yourself over at nuci.org/mikey-houser-pre-amped, and follow Sam Holt and crew over at facebook.com/SamHoltMusic.
LUCKY MAN: With just about a year in Athens under their belts, the trio known as Parking Garage will release a hugely ambitious, 12-and-a-half-minute (!) single on Oct. 2. It’s named “Six Finger Handshake” and, while the band has performed it live, this is its first recorded instance. The song is deeply personal and runs a gamut of hospital stays, falling in love, depression, et al. Structurally, as you might imagine due to its length, it definitely dips into prog-rock territory for the bulk of its middle, but it’s a prog sound born from a pop-punk sensibility which means you’ll never mistake it for, say, Genesis. Lyrically, it can be a little operatic, but the tune itself does have what could be considered movements, so it all works. It is bookended by a strong and melodic four-chord pop-emo section punctuated by a wonderfully placed trumpet. This won’t be for everyone, and nothing ever is, but it’s worth a shot. Head to parkinggarage.bandcamp.com to check it out once it’s released, and be a pal over at facebook.com/parkinggarageband.
BUBBLING UNDERGROUND: By the time you read this, not only will local punks Beer Piss have released its new album Beer Piss !!! but the band will also have played its release show. But, you can still catch up and be up to speed for next time if you go check out this fine slice of noise as soon as you can. Seriously and honestly, Beer Piss is among the most creative and daring of our current local punk scene. At first blush, listeners might just hear a bunch of half composed songs that sound like they were recorded through a boombox’s internal microphone. However, really, really smart and clever listeners like you are much more likely to hear a direct lineage to The Germs, The Screamers and other hallmarks of ancient Los Angeles. I’m not joking at all when I say I was super impressed by this. Mentioning individual tracks is meaningless, though, as every single one of these 16 tracks has its own merits. Find it at beerpiss.bandcamp.com.
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