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Blog posts by Gordon Lamb

Guadalcanal Diary's Jeff Walls Hospitalized With Rare Illness

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: David Palmer

Jeff Walls (third from left) with Guadalcanal Diary in 1982.

For weeks, decades-long Athens musician, Marietta native, walking encyclopedia and friend Jeff Walls (Guadalcanal Diary, Hillbilly Frankenstein, The Woggles) has been suffering from what we now know is an exceedingly rare condition.

By Gordon Lamb | May 1, 2019
SXSW 2019: Unpacking a Weird Week in Austin

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Mike White

The Chills

Anxiety, confusion and emotional lethargy were more on deck during this year’s South by Southwest than I’ve ever encountered before.

By Gordon Lamb | March 19, 2019
New West to Reissue The Glands' Catalog, Release New Album

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Sean Dungan

In a move that can best be described as a labor of love, New West Records is planning a truly magnanimous tribute to Athens band The Glands, whose frontman, Ross Shapiro, died in 2016.

By Gordon Lamb | October 9, 2018
Live Review: Bastian Baker at Infinite Energy Center

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: David Olkarny

I got the call at 5:04 p.m. on June 4. The voice on the other end of the line was alerting me that my tickets for Canadian country-music superstar Shania Twain's appearance at Duluth's Infinite Energy Arena were secure and waiting at will call for me. So, of course, the first thing I did was start calling around trying to find someone who understood this was a not-to-be-missed situation. First call? Dinner plans. Second call? Band practice. Third call? "Aw, Gordon, thanks but… really?"

By Gordon Lamb | June 22, 2018
The World Famous Hosts Herb Herndon Tribute Thursday

Blog: Homedrone

Some old friends of the late Athens songwriter Herb Herndon will gather to pay tribute and play a set of his songs Thursday, Mar. 29 at The World Famous at 8 p.m.

By Gordon Lamb | March 28, 2018
SXSW Report: Todd Rundgren, Fader Fort, Panels and More

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Gordon Lamb

Todd Rundgren

For just about three weeks leading up to this year’s South by Southwest, I’d been increasingly bothered by sustained pain on my upper right side that spread from my shoulder to my neck and then straight down my arm until everything felt like it was on fire all the time. After dragging myself to double appointments with both an acupuncturist and chiropractor the week before traveling, it was determined that I was injured for the most unexciting reasons (years of bad sleeping positions, poor posture, general misadventure).

By Gordon Lamb | March 17, 2018
Here's How to Apply to Play AthFest 2018

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Austin Steele/file

Futurebirds performs at AthFest 2017.

OK, gang, it’s that time of year when the most organized among you are already prepared to submit an application to play at the 2018 AthFest Music & Arts Festival. And, conveniently, applications are now being accepted.

By Gordon Lamb | January 4, 2018
RIP Athens Musician Mark Cunningham

Blog: Homedrone

Americana singer-songwriter, friend, father and husband Mark Cunningham passed away suddenly the morning of Friday, May 26.

By Gordon Lamb | May 30, 2017
RIP Col. Bruce Hampton

Blog: Homedrone

Col. Bruce Hampton, a Georgia music legend and an inspiration for generations of Athens artists, passed away suddenly last night, May 1.

By Gordon Lamb | May 2, 2017
Flagpole at SXSW: The Mega-Fest Finds Its Chill

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Mike White

Denzel Curry

SXSW in 2017 is, by far, the most chill it’s been in years. The biggest difference this year is a marked reduction in the number of previously huge free and public day parties. Longstanding, multi-day events like the Hype Hotel (presented by music blog aggregator The Hype Machine), Spotify House, Mess With Texas and others didn't happen this year. Even the hugely influential and exceedingly popular Fader Fort reduced its footprint from accommodating several thousand to merely a few hundred after losing its previously held location.

By Gordon Lamb | March 17, 2017
Flagpole at SXSW: Sammy Hagar Talks Guy Fieri, Cabo Wabo, Pussy Riot

Blog: Homedrone

I don't know what I was thinking.

By Gordon Lamb | March 17, 2017
Jason Thrasher Launches Crowdfunding Campaign for 'Athens Potluck' Book

Blog: Culture Briefs

Photo Credit: Jason Thrasher

Jill Carnes, from the "Athens Potluck" series.

Photographer Jason Thrasher has already had a lot of success with his "Athens Potluck" project. He's exhibited at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and opened at the Georgia Theatre. It seems everyone in town has heard of his series of local-music photos, the central conceit of which is that each person photographed suggested the next subject, and on and on.

By Gordon Lamb | March 15, 2017
Flagpole at SXSW: Buzz Aldrin Speaks

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Mike White

It's both sad and fascinating that, for all the promotion STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and STEAM (the same, but with arts) education has gotten over the past two decades, only a slight handful of college-age acquaintances showed any sign of recognition when I said I was gonna see astronaut Edwin Eugene “Buzz” Aldrin Jr. do a live talk with writer Jeffrey Kluger.

By Gordon Lamb | March 15, 2017
'Georgia Reads' Series Kicks off Saturday With Party Out of Bounds Panel at Avid

Blog: Homedrone

Avid Bookshop and the University of Georgia Press are teaming up with Georgia Public Broadcasting and National Endowment for the Humanities affiliate Georgia Humanities to launch a "virtual book club" called Georgia Reads. And they're launching it in the coolest possible way for us Athens music history buffs.

By Gordon Lamb | March 14, 2017
Bloodkin's Daniel Hutchens Suffers Stroke, Friends Set Up Gofundme

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Bloodkin via Facebook

A Gofundme page has been set up for Bloodkin member Daniel Hutchens, who suffered a minor hemorrhagic stroke recently.

By Gordon Lamb | November 30, 2016
R.I.P. Artist and Athens Scene Fixture Jeremy Ayers

Blog: Culture Briefs

Photo Credit: Jason Thrasher

The Athens arts and music scene took another terrible blow today, Monday, Oct. 24, as reports spread through town that Jeremy "Jerry" Ayers had passed away after suffering a seizure and falling into a brief coma.

By Gordon Lamb | October 24, 2016
R.I.P. Athens Musician and Chef Damien Schaefer

Blog: Homedrone

Longtime Athenian musician, chef and friend Damien Schaefer passed away the morning of Saturday, Oct. 15 after battling cancer.

By Gordon Lamb | October 18, 2016
Slingshot Founder Kai Riedl Takes Moogfest Job

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Jeremy Ayers

Kai Riedl, the creator and director of Athens' Slingshot Festival, has accepted a job as executive producer for Moogfest in Durham, NC.

Riedl's new duties include handling all production aspects of the electronic and experimental-music event, which was formerly held in Asheville but moved to Durham last year.

By Gordon Lamb | September 13, 2016
Gordon Lamb's Favorite Athens Popfest Moments

Blog: Homedrone

Flagpole music columnist Gordon Lamb was a partner in the Athens Popfest—which returns today after a five-year hiatus—from 2008–2011. Below, five of his favorite Popfest memories:

Black Kids

1. Black Kids breaking out was huge. Their first show outside of Florida was the Athens Popfest in 2007. The rest is history.

By Gordon Lamb | August 10, 2016
SXSW Thursday: Tony Visconti, Don Cheadle, Kool Keith and More

Blog: Homedrone

Photo Credit: Gordon Lamb

Kool Keith

Things started picking up nicely after Wednesday’s disappointing experiences. The keynote from legendary producer Tony Visconti (David Bowie, T. Rex, et al) was relatively polemic-free and mostly focused on his own musical development. He did impart a sharp, noted instruction for record labels, though. “Look for the freaks. Don’t stay in Hollywood,” he said. Not bad advice for all the tiny label chasing sounds, too.

By Gordon Lamb | March 18, 2016