OUT ON THE STREETS, THAT’S WHERE WE’LL MEET: Widespread Panic has released the full multi-track recording of its Apr. 18, 1998 show recorded live on the streets of Athens. This event, which I covered completely in my book Widespread Panic In The Streets of Athens, Georgia (University of Georgia Press, 2018), is known colloquially as “panic in the streets,” and it was ostensibly a release party for the band’s then-first official live album, Light Fuse, Get Away, but it became something far larger and more profound in both its cultural impact on Athens and in the memory of Panic fans. This is the entire show, not just the selections that were featured on the 2002 video release. It is available on bandcamp.com, nugs.net and all major streaming services. For all other information, including track listing and production credits, please see widespreadpanic.com/2025/04/03/athens-1998.
BLATANT LOCALISM: The Skatepark Of Athens (SPOA) celebrates its 20th anniversary with an all-day event on Saturday, Apr. 19. Taking place at the skatepark itself, located at Southeast Clarke Park (4440 Lexington Road), the event runs from noon to 8 p.m. and will host food trucks, an artists and vendors market, and, of course, a ton of bands. Featured acts, in order of appearance starting at 12:30 p.m., are Krooked Bones, Quinn Shawty, Kae Quentin, Nic Main, No Kingdom, Multiple Migs, Noise Mountain, Mandown and Five Eight. There are also planned contests happening all day “including best trick, most creative trick and kids-only jam.” This whole event is free and open to the public. And that’s pretty much every bit of information you need, but if you are looking for more, please see instagram.com/skate_spoa and athensskateparkproject.org.
DARK SIDE OF THE TUNE: Continuing his streak of releasing a new album pretty much exactly every two years is Grayson Hauser, who returns this week with the six-song album Mirrors. This one is less directly song oriented and more improvisationally focused. He recorded these tracks last fall and winter, and boy, do they sound like it. The title track, and the first one here, is believably isolated with its single, tuneful guitar rippling through tasteful amounts of echo. In terms of pure “bliss out” power, you’re probably looking at “Prairie Winds” and “Pale Fire.” Things take a slightly darker turn on “Creation,” but really take a turn on the multi-movement—and nearly 12-minute long—“Dreaming New Worlds Into Being.” It cycles through multiple moods with varying success, but it’s a little jarring for this long, final track to end seemingly abruptly without resolving its melody, and it ends the record on an uncomfortable note. Check it out at graysonhauser.bandcamp.com.
HERE WE GO: Another great track came out recently courtesy of Nerveclinic. Accompanied again by a video presentation, this new piece, “Bad Slab Dub,” is right at about five-and-a-half minutes long, which is just long enough for the listener to slip into it then wonder, “Hey, where’d that music go?” It’s got a cinematic quality to it and a slightly reticent personality. I played this three times in a row the first time I heard it, and probably could’ve used a 15-minute remix of it. Shortly, it’s a mid-tempo electro piece that takes cues from both downtempo and progressive ambient but, to be honest, Nerve Clinic doesn’t really take cues from anything and has cut its own path for decades. Find this and a lot more at youtube.com/@nerveclinic.
FIRE FROM HEAVEN: Guadalcanal Diary’s Murray Attaway will release his first new album in three decades next month, and has already put out two singles from it. Both will be instantaneously recognizable to Guadalcanal—which was from Marietta, but did always enjoy a close connection with Athens—fans by virtue of Attaway’s signature vocals. And that’s not to mention his guitar playing, which was always heavily rhythmic, with a slight moodiness about it. The first single, “Breath,” is the more dramatic of the two with “Stars Behind The Moon” more in the acoustic singer-songwriter arena. His new album, Tense Music Plays, will be released on May 9. Attaway will play an Athens release show on Saturday, May 17 at The Foundry with Atlanta’s Clay Harper (Ottoman Empire), known as much for his culinary prowess as the owner of Atlanta’s Fellini’s and La Fonda restaurants as he ever was for his music. For more information, please see murrayattaway.com.
ALL SEWN UP: The steadily working Scarlet Stitch has a few shows coming up that audiences should find pretty convenient. This straight-up rock and roll band, albeit pulling influences from a wide swath of artists, will play the Creature Comforts Farmers Market Wednesday, Apr. 16 at 6 p.m. But if you miss that one, you can catch ’em at Winterville’s Front Porch Bookstore (102 Marigold Lane) on Saturday, May 3 at 6 p.m., or the next day Sunday, May 4 at Jefferson’s PorchFest where they’ll perform at Sugar And Spice (86 N Public Square) at an as-yet undetermined time, but that whole event is scheduled for between noon and 6 p.m. Check out facebook.com/scarletstitchband and scarlet-stitch.com for more information.
Like what you just read? Support Flagpole by making a donation today. Every dollar you give helps fund our ongoing mission to provide Athens with quality, independent journalism.
