hissing lawns

Larry Jack’s Magical Music Tour – 10/15/15-10/21/15

by Larry Jack Sammons • October 15, 2015

Hey guys,
There are plenty of good shows around town this week. Thursday night starts with a good show at Sulfur Studios at 7pm, then you can head over to Wormhole or Hang Fire to finish the night. Friday presents quite a few tough choices. I think the best show of the week will be the Accomplices EP Release Party at the Roundhouse. It will be nice to see another show in the old section of the museum, and the Accomplices know how to throw a good party. I expect that show will end early enough to see either the Train Wrecks in a rare show at the Wormhole or the Prince Party with Nickel Bag Of Funk at the Barrelhouse. Although Saturday has fewer choices, you can still get a night full of music. I would recommend starting the evening of at the Chromatic Dragon with French Horn Rebellion, then heading to Congress Street for either the heavy show at the Jinx or American Hologram at Molly’s. IF you get a chance, check out the Facebook page on the Barbwire Dolls, who are coming to the Jinx Wednesday. It looks like it should be an interesting show. And how often do you get a chance to see Greek punk rock?

Thursday 15th
Eric Culberson (Sav’h blues) – Bayou Cafe
Jupiter Highway – Molly MacPherson’s
Stan Ray (Accomplices drummer on guitar & vocals) – Warehouse
Gumps (Sav’h fraggle-punk), Cult Cyph (Sav’h hip-hop), Valore (Sav’h hip-hop), The Hippie And The Punk – Sulfur Studios (7p)
Breakers (Sav), Curbdogs (Sav’h dog rock), Hernies (Athens) – Hang Fire
Street Clothes (Sav’h rock), Left In The Attic (Bronx garage rock) – Wormhole

Friday 16th
Dreamend (Sav’h death bubble), Marshmallow Ghosts, Des Ark, Hospital Ships (TX indie) – Graveface Records and Curiosites (Graveface 4th Anniversary Party, 6p, free, all ages)
Downtown Sheiks (Anders from Damon & The Shitkickers) – Warehouse
Ear Candy – Wild Wing Cafe
Electric Ewok, Prince Party w/ Nickel Bag Of Funk – Barrelhouse South
Magic Rocks (Sav’h classic rock) – Molly MacPherson’s
Saint Francis Band (Athens Americana) – Congress Street Social Club
Train Wrecks (Sav’h Americana), Community Center – Wormhole
Accomplices (Sav’h lowcountry string band), Dangermuffin (SC Americana) – Ga State Railroad Museum (8p, $20/25, includes food, CD; all ages)

Saturday 17th
American Hologram (Sav’h Americana goth pop) – Molly MacPherson’s
Jon Lee & The Apparitions (Sav’h rock) – Rocks On The Roof
McQueen (Comedy/music) – Wormhole ($8)
Train Wrecks (Sav’h Americana) – Jazz’d
Antagonizers ATL (Atlanta rock), DDC (Atlanta street punk) – Jinx
French Horn Rebellion – Chromatic Dragon (8-11)

Tuesday 20th
Ben Keiser Band (Sav’h rock) – Bay Street Blues
Eric Culberson Open Jam – Bayou Cafe

Wednesday 21st
Barbwire Dolls (Greek punk) – Jinx

Furious Hooves releases new Gnaw Rains video + cassettes for Cassette Store Day

by bill • October 15, 2015

Furious Hooves — the indie label based in part in Savannah — has two new releases coming out on Cassette Store Day on 10/17: STAY RAD SAV, which is being released jointly with Soft Science Records, and FURIOUS HOOPS VOL. 01, which was featured by Rolling Stone in advance of Record Store Day.

In conjunction with those new releases, here’s the premiere of Gnaw Rains‘ video for “White Chocolate, Black Pleather”, one of the tracks on FURIOUS HOOPS VOL. 01:

In other news from Furious Hooves, the dream-pop/indie-folk act Heavy Boots (aka, Rachael Perisho) teamed with the guys in Triathalon to make the new record Sister Lives. Check out the new music video for “So Long”, which was directed by Chad Chilton of Triathalon, Rachael Perisho, and Maria Gelsomini:

You can buy Sister Lives on cassette here, and you can find a Furious Hooves table on 10/16 at the 4th anniversary party of Graveface Records & Curiosities.

Wednesday with Breakers

by Holden Taylor • October 14, 2015

I spent the day with Breakers. It was a Wednesday. They were working on their first EP.

Lineup:

Corey Hines: Guitar
Samford Justice: Vocals
Lucas Carpenter: Bass
Carson Sanders: Percussion
Peter Mavrogeorgis: Producer; co-owner, Dollhouse

I pull up to the Dollhouse on my rickety black bike and Luca is outside having a smoke so I join him. It’s just before noon. I give him a hug, we exchange the pleasantries that good friends do and amble into the studio.

Everything’s concrete and beautiful and exactly as you’d want it to be. There are a few levels, all connected in open air. A makeshift bar sits below, a stage above. Scattered on the ground are hundreds of sleeved vinyl records. The outside wall of the studio’s control room is plastered with miscellaneous office paper: a 1972 receipt from the American Cryogenics Association and forms from unions disbanded decades ago.

When I walk in, Peter is digitizing a 1961 recording of Barbara the Gray Witch whose voice instructs us on how to use “the secrets of witchcraft to find the child you once were.”

Everyone sits differently. Corey, who I work with and sort of under, is slumped, sunglasses on. He tells me he had himself a pity party the night before and briefly emerges from his hangover to crack a wry smile.

Luca, tall and thin, sits legs tight and Samford more open, both close on a leather couch, the two reveling in the work they’d done the night before. I sit on the arm of a chair, an observer. Peter hunches over the soundboard in manic poetry.

Soon Sam begins passing out cold PBRs. We crack them and begin to search: for the children we once were or maybe just a remedy to last night’s poison. Someone puts a video on the hanging flat screen t.v. of a dubbed Kings of Leon concert. We see the band playing to thousands of fans and hear perfectly synced squeals and tone-deaf crooning.

Breakers at Dollhouse in one of their 1st public gigs, late summer 2015

“The last time I saw these guys,” Peter says of the Kings of Leon, “I urinated myself violently.” We laugh and the young musicians around me, I imagine, maybe dream of being rockstars like him, professional and successful and productive.

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Insane Clown Posse, P.O.D. + the Marvelous Missing Link Tour at the Music Vault — photos

by bill • October 13, 2015

Insane Clown Posse‘s roots go back to Detroit of the 1980s, but the horrorcore rap duo and their various attendant ghouls seemed right at home on Saturday night in Hardeeville, South Carolina. ICP has long appealed to fans who find themselves on society’s fringes, who have been marginalized in our status-obsessed culture, so no surprise that hundreds would turn out for a show along a quiet stretch of highway in the deep South.

Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope have over the decades built a massive, faithful following, and a few nights ago at the Music Vault I felt a little bit of that draw, that energy, that magnetism (heh).

I don’t know ICP’s work well enough to write a traditional review of the show, but it was obvious that, even after all these years, the band connects viscerally with fans, whether those concertgoers identify as juggalos or not. Saturday’s performance was certainly filled with energy and with all sorts of antics, including the constant spray of Faygo, but there was also brilliant lighting, sound, and pacing. As the audience got lost in the music, the mood became increasingly exuberant, exhilarating, even joyful. The imagery in some of our photos here might seem eerie and frightening, but the effect was wildly different.

By the end of ICP’s set, there was a throng on stage, all drenched in Faygo and all spraying the audience. It was a dazzling spectacle.

ICP’s ongoing Marvelous Missing Link Tour also features some truly impressive opening acts, all of which helped set the stage for the manic, cathartic experience at the end of the night.

Like ICP, P.O.D. (Payable on Death) has been around for a while, but man, they can still bring it. Lead singer Sonny Sandoval’s charismatic presence was infectious (in a good way), especially when he was praising an older fan who ended up stage diving and when he was leading the crowd through their big anthem “Youth of the Nation”.

Saturday’s bill also included DJ Paul of Three 6 Mafia — another strong set and another upbeat stage vibe. (Our condolences to DJ Paul on the death of Three 6 Mafia member Koopsta Knicca.) Dope D.O.D., a rap duo from the Netherlands with over a quarter million Facebook fans, really impressed me, as did Young Wicked, whose confessional lyrics at times hit unexpected emotional chords. Great stuff.

I arrived at the show a little after the scheduled 8 p.m. start time, but by the time I got myself settled, I only saw a few minutes of the local support from Cult Cyph, but it’s clear that the Dope Sandwich-affiliated duo is an act worth watching.

This was my first trip, by the way, to the Music Vault, and I was impressed with the technical specs, the layout, the staff — everything.

Photographer Dave Spangenburg, who has contributed to hissing lawns previously, joined me at Saturday’s show. Between us, we took a lot of photos. Most of the shots in this post are mine, and the ones without watermark are Dave’s. We’ll have another post with more of his photos soon, and look for even more eventually on the hissing lawns Facebook page. Tons more after the jump:

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Kylesa, Inter Arma and Indian Handcrafts at The Jinx – photos

by Tom Cartmel • October 13, 2015

I’ve seen Kylesa live more than the average bear, somewhere in the range of…..well, a lot, let’s just leave it at that. I don’t think I’m reaching when I say that Friday night’s stunning performance at The Jinx was my favorite ever (though the free all ages Dollhouse show a couple years ago comes close) and one of the highlights of 2015 so far. Insanely tight, supporting their great new album Exhausting Fire, playing a packed hometown show with a very game crowd, touring with a stellar supporting bill, everything just added up to amazing. The moody instrumental passages and buildups coupled with their swirling, hypnotic light show was really working, the vocal interplay has matured very, very well and the heavy psych/metal riffing had a certain pummeling bounce to it that flat out made me smile all night. In short, Kylesa is at the top of their game currently. Great, great, great.

As I mentioned, the undercard was no slouch, either. Sadly, Irata had to drop off the bill due to member illness, but hopefully they make it back to support their new Retro Futurist release, as they impressed at their Savannah Stopover gig.

Indian Handcrafts was a very catchy guitar/drums duo with muscular riffs and heavy hooks aplenty. I’m really looking forward to digging into their new slab of tunes, Creeps, and would definitely be happy to see them again live.

Inter Arma treads somewhere between doom metal and proggy stoner rock with some forays into other various corners of the world of “heavy” music. Good stuff out of Richmond.

Bill and I both took plenty of photos, check out tons more after the jump.

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Pretend Sweethearts at Foxy Loxy Print Gallery & Cafe – photos & video

by JWaits • October 11, 2015

Pretend Sweethearts were in Savannah again this weekend, and after performing at a house-show last night played for the brunch crowd at Foxy Loxy Print Gallery & Cafe this afternoon. The duo comprised of Drew de Man & Brianna Blackbird now occasionally add upright bassist Joe Stevens to their lineup, making their already harmonious sound more well-rounded. PS are basing themselves in Atlanta for the time being while deciding what the next direction is, picking up regular work both performing & teaching music, and Savannah has been the lucky recipient of more of their performances as of late. Traveling & touring with small children is never easy, but somehow they manage to make it work as you’ll see in these photos. A performance by Pretend Sweethearts is most assuredly a family affair!

Foxy Loxy Cafe continues to book both local & touring acts for their weekly Acoustic Tuesday (7-10pm), First Friday Art March participation, and the occasional brunch entertainment. You can find Foxy’s full music schedule by clicking on either of the highlighted links above.

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check out the new video from Happy Thoughts (Dope Knife + Miggs Son Daddy), just released by Dope Sandwich

by bill • October 11, 2015

A few days ago, Happy Thoughts (we love the name) released a new video for “The Definition”:

Happy Thoughts is a collaboration of Dope KNife and Miggs Son Daddy, who have both released an extensive amount of work on the Dope Sandwich label.

You can check out Happy Thoughts on 10/14 at Barrelhouse South here in Savannah. That show kicks off a short East Coast tour. “The Definition” is off the newly released Just The Tip (the mixtape):

yes, Insane Clown Posse takes over the Music Vault near Savannah on 10/10

by bill • October 9, 2015

We’ve posted about the show before, so here’s just a reminder about the Insane Clown Posse show at the Music Vault in Hardeeville (just a few miles across the river from Savannah) on 10/10 as part of the Marvelous Missing Link Tour.

Yes, Juggalos, Juggalettes, Faygo. Yes, horrorcore.

Opening acts include P.O.D., Dope D.O.D., Young Wicked, and locals Cult Cyph.

This Saturday Night October 10th 2015!! Insane Clown Posse & POD Tickets available at etix.com, The Lofe Cafe in…

Posted by Music Vault on Thursday, October 8, 2015

Check out this great review from Faygoluvers of the show this week in Philly. Click here for Anna Chandler’s hysterical preview of the show in Connect Savannah. And click here for Bradley Mullis’s take on the band in Do Savannah.

We hope to be covering the show, so, assuming our gear survives the Faygo, we’ll have some photos to post here next week.

Larry Jack’s Magical Music Tour – 10/9/15 – 10/13/15

by Larry Jack Sammons • October 8, 2015

Thursday 8th
Ese, Wave Slaves – Jinx ($5)

Friday 9th
Rosies – Ordinary Pub
Big Big Extra Face, Roshambeaux – Barrelhouse South
Brian Robert and the Winter Sound – Congress Street Social Club
Kylesa, Indian Handcrafts, Inter Arma Irata – Jinx
Psych Night w/ Go!Zilla – Dollhouse Studios ($5)

Saturday 10th
Epic Cycle – Warehouse
Insane Clown Posse – Music Vault ($30)
Baby Baby – Congress Street Social Club
Ben Lewis, Kellen Powers – Barrelhouse South
Flying Bacon Cheeseburgers – Huc-A-Poo’s
King Dude – Jinx ($10)
Matt Parker & The Deacons – Wild Wing
Nowhere Child, Street Clothes, Any Otherwise, Charlatan – Wormhole

Sunday 11th
Pretend Sweethearts – Foxy Loxy Cafe (12-3)

Tuesday 13th
Jason Bible – Foxy Loxy Cafe (7p)

Kylesa returns to The Jinx on 10/9; new album “Exhausting Fire” receiving critical acclaim

by bill • October 8, 2015

Kylesa performed on opening night of The Jinx, and the Savannah-based metal/rock/hard-to-pigeonhole band will play The Jinx’s 12th anniversary on October 9th as they tour in support of their new album Exhausting Fire.

Click here to stream Exhausting Fire and to buy the new album on clear vinyl, cassette, or CD.

You can read Do Savannah’s coverage of Exhausting Fire here and here. And click here for Connect Savannah’s interview with Kylesa’s Laura Pleasants (one of the band’s three core members along with Phillip Cope and Carl McGinley), who says this about the new album:

I feel that it’s definitely a sum of all of our parts. All the strong elements we’ve ever used are there: from the old-school, the heavy drop-tune guitar, a lot of the heavy riffs are back that were maybe not present on the other. The icy, gothic tones are there, the psychedelic meanderings are there: all of the things that make Kylesa Kylesa are there. It’s maybe a bit more sophisticated and focused.

From Spin (with an allusion to Kylesa’s up-and-coming Retro Futurist label):
Exhausting Fire is far more alt-rock than metal (and still more stoner-rock than it is crust-punk); the grungy vibe works for the trio, and pulling back from doom gives them more space to get weird. While their earlier output was often lumped into a crowded geographic scene, Kylesa’s always been a different beast than the vintage rockers in Mastodon or prog-loving Baroness. With this new album, they finally sever those last few ties, and forge ahead into the retro future.

From Metal Injection:
As consistent and of-a-piece as the album is as a whole, though, I find myself coming back to those two instant classics, “Growing Roots” and “Night Drive”, either one of which should immediately qualify as encore material in the band’s setlist.

From Consequence of Sound:
On the outfit’s seventh album, Kylesa again reinvent themselves as a music box of stoner psych and alt metal dabbling. 2013’s Ultraviolet was a hesitant test run, a toe in the pool as opposed to the total submergence found here, as Kylesa surrender themselves to weirder songwriting tics, prismatic genre-blending, and spiritual concession.

From Noisey:
By now, the band really seems to have grown into itself, and Kylesa’s new album, Exhausting Fire (out 10/2 on Season of Mist) is the sum of all their myriad influences, from swampy sludge to icy goth, crystallized and refined into perfection. This is the album that finally sees Kylesa achieve their lofty potential; it’s the most focused and interesting release in their long discography, and may well signify a watershed moment in their career. They’ve never sounded better, or more ready to take things to the next level.

Exhausting Fire feels like an ethereal trip — sometimes you’re spinning drunkenly in the open air; sometimes you’re running ecstatically, crazily, under a blackened sky; sometimes you’re diffidently questioning the reality of everything around you; sometimes you just give yourself over to the driving beat.

Click here for details on the Savannah show, which includes openers Inter Arma, Indian Handcrafts, and Irata.

Blues Trinity: A Tribute to the 3 Kings at Lucas Theatre for the Arts – photos

by JWaits • October 6, 2015

Last week brought an all-star performance from some of Savannah’s best known, and heaviest hitters at Lucas Theatre for the Arts. Blues Trinity: A Tribute to the 3 Kings (Albert, Freddie, and B.B. King) featured so many notable performers that quite frankly it would be hard to name them all, but the highlighted musician of the night was B.B. King‘s longtime drummer and friend Tony Coleman, who not only kept time with the stage full of players, but also regaled the audience with a few stories and memories of playing with one of the night’s featured Kings.

Here are a few photos with more after the jump.

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Jason Bible releases solo record with special show at the Gingerbread House – photos

by bill • October 3, 2015

When he first takes the stage, Jason Bible of The Train Wrecks approaches the microphone with a seeming reluctance. He often looks down, and sort of shuffles along, with a certain self-deprecating air.

But then Jason attacks the guitar and his slightly raspy voice takes command of the room.

The last time I saw Jason Bible perform solo was at a private party for a mutual friend. He was so good in that setting that I knew I had to see his recent gig at the Gingerbread House, where he released his wonderful new solo CD. I feared at first that the setting would feel too formal, but Bible and his Train Wrecks’ bandmate Jeremy Hammons clearly put some real thought into the venue. The room, which easily held the audience of over 100, sounded great.

The show was billed as a night of storytelling and music, and Jason is for sure a wonderful storyteller, in part because of that modest presence. His stories were short and moving — a revelation at Hank Williams’ grave, the inspiration that he finds in the life of a deceased friend. Such stories dotted the show, which included both Jason’s originals and some masterful covers.

Payne Bridges, a really solid singer-songwriter, opened the show. This was my first time hearing Bridges, and I’ll be sure to check her out again.

The lighting and sight lines weren’t necessarily ideal for photography, but the overall effect fit the mood of the night.