Blog Topic: This Weekend

Homedrone: Flagpole Premieres! Hot Fudge: 'Other Side of the Gates'

By Gabe Vodicka | June 26, 2014 10:24am

Psych-rockers Hot Fudge are gearing up to celebrate the release of a damn solid debut, #1 Tape, this Friday. In advance of the release show, we're pleased as punch to premiere the album's second single, which you can stream below.

"Other Side of the Gates" follows the pumped-up "To Be One Ask One," which you heard way back in January. Where "To Be One" was tightly wound, scuzzed-out and power-poppy, the new tune is a lovely, extended, somewhat Floydian psych jam that ends in a raucous guitar assaul

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Homedrone: Win Tickets: The English Beat Plays Melting Point Friday

By Gabe Vodicka | June 12, 2014 2:07pm

British 2-tone ska legends The English Beat play the Melting Point Friday, and we've got two pairs of tickets to give away. To enter, tell us in the comments below why YOU deserve to go for free. We'll choose two winners Friday at 4:30 p.m.

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Culture Briefs: Classic City Rollergirls Doubleheader Preview

By David Eduardo | May 30, 2014 10:56am

The 2014 season is officially in full swing for our hometown Classic City Rollergirls. Since we last checked in with the ladies in green and black, they’ve played three exciting bouts far away from the friendly confines of the Classic Center.

CCRG’s road trip began May 3 at the Columbia County Exhibition Center just outside of Augusta, where they participated in the six-team Low Down Throw Down tournament. The team had the unenviable task of getting fired up for a 10 a.m. bout against the hostess Soul City Sirens. Maybe they should schedule all their bouts just after breakfast. CCRG, led by the MVP-jamming of Louis Strongarm and an impressive performance from newcomer Phat Amy, dispatched of Augusta 170-116, in an amazing, come-from-behind victory. The team trailed by as many as 38 points early in the bout but refused to quit.

Unfortunately the ladies tasted not only the thrill of victory but also the agony of defeat in Augusta. Birmingham-based Tragic City Rollers, led by stand-out jammer (and maybe total psycho) Mad Villain along with some bulldozing, lane-opening blocking from Eiffel Power, defeated Classic City 96-75 in a grinding, defensive battle. Being the second half of a double-header, fatigue was obviously a factor for both teams.

More after the jump.

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Homedrone: Flagpole Heads to Shaky Knees This Weekend

By Gabe Vodicka | May 6, 2014 1:02pm

Modest Mouse

This weekend, Friday, May 9–Sunday, May 11, the Shaky Knees Festival takes over Atlantic Station, the monolithic live-work-play development on the edge of Midtown Atlanta. It's the fest's first year in the current location, which will up its capacity by several thousand and no doubt increase its visibility in the region and beyond. (Read an interview with Shaky Knees founder Tim Sweetwood over at Creative Loafing.)

The ante has been appropriately upped when it comes to the lineup, too: Alongside indie rock heavyweights Modest Mouse, The National, The Hold Steady, Alabama Shakes and Spoon sit perennial oldster faves like the Violent Femmes and the reunited Replacements. (Several bands with Athens ties will perform at the fest and/or its associated afterparty shows, too, including Reptar, The Whigs and New Madrid.)

Peep the full lineup, much of which skews toward the increasingly overarching "Americana" genre, here. Headed to the fest? After the jump, check out our primer, where we list a few of the undercard acts you'd be a fool to miss.

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Homedrone: Watch a Warm and Fuzzy New Video From the Warm Fuzzies

By Gabe Vodicka | May 2, 2014 12:12pm

Photo Credit: Mike White

The unabashed Weezer fanatics that make up local power-pop band The Warm Fuzzies craft hook-heavy tunes that are, well, pretty true to the group's name. So it should come as no surprise that the video for "Oregon," a track from the Fuzzies' brand new album, Extinction, is pretty dang warm and fuzzy.

See for yourself after the jump.

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Homedrone: Win Tickets, T-Shirt, CD: Bear Hands Plays Melting Point Sunday

By Gabe Vodicka | May 1, 2014 11:43am

New York City indie rockers Bear Hands play Melting Point Sunday, May 4 with local upstartsDana Swimmer, and we've got a bunch of stuff to give away to one of y'all lucky ducks. In addition to a pair of tickets to Sunday's show, the winner will receive a Bear Hands T-shirt and a copy of the band's new album, Distraction, on CD.

To enter, tell us in the comments after the jump why YOU deserve this veritable swag bag. We'll choose a winner Sunday at 4 p.m.

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Homedrone: Win Tickets/CD: The Whigs Play the 40 Watt Saturday

By Gabe Vodicka | April 18, 2014 1:41pm

The members of The Whigs don't reside in Athens any longer, but that doesn't stop them from considering our town home at heart. Saturday, the band returns for a sure-to-be raucous show at the 40 Watt Club, and we've got a pair of tickets and a copy of the group's new album, Modern Creation, on CD to give away courtesy of New West Records.

To win both of these prizes, comment after the jump with why YOU deserve the tix and tunes. We'll choose a winner Saturday at 4:30 p.m.

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Culture Briefs: Classic City Rollergirls vs. Chattanooga Roller Girls Preview

By David Eduardo | April 18, 2014 10:43am

A CCRG billboard looms over West Broad Street.

Saturday night, the hometown Classic City Rollergirls are set to battle their counterparts from Chattanooga, and for familiar reasons, they have their work cut out for them.

Chattanooga bested Classic City last season, 128-107. This season the Tennessee team is off to a 1-1 start, having split a home-and-home series with the Bowling Green, KY-based Vette City Vixens. Led by standout blocker Tasty Murder and a pair of high-powered jammers, Gisselle Bludgeon and (recent Knoxville transfer) Drop Dead Gorgeous, the road team looks to improve their record and, at the very least, preserve their No. 122 WFTDA (Women’s Flat Track Derby Association) ranking.

More after the jump.

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Homedrone: New Earth Garden Party This Weekend

By Gabe Vodicka | April 3, 2014 5:08pm

New Earth Music Hall (or New Earth Athens, depending which logo you trust) has quietly but continually reinvented itself throughout its existence, and the venue continutes to wear many hats: electro hotspot, jam-band base, Freekfest headquarters, etc. Many clubs in town claim to present a metaphorical rainbow of music; few actually do so as consistently.

New Earth has also undergone a physical transformation of late, turning from dingy concrete room to sleek, wood-paneled B corp. On Friday and Saturday, the venue will celebrate the official opening of its newly remodeled outdoor area and garden stage with a two-day "Garden Party" featuring 18 local and regional acts that run the gamut from folk to rock to reggae and beyond.

More after the jump.

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Homedrone: Win Tickets: Conspirator Plays Georgia Theatre Saturday

By Gabe Vodicka | March 31, 2014 1:24pm

Looking for another reason to party? Heavy electro-rock outfit Conspirator, the Philadelphia-based group fronted by the Disco Biscuits' Marc Brownstein, hits Athens Saturday, Apr. 5 for a late-night show at the Georgia Theatre. Tickets are $15, but we've got a pair just sittin' here, ready to give away.

To enter the contest, comment after the jump with why YOU deserve to go for free. We'll choose a winner this Friday at 4:30 p.m.

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