Hello, people. Well, this is really the last week before UGA starts raging full-on, but chances are good you've seen some starry-eyed pups around town already. Don't hurt 'em. Show them the way to this page that has guided you through so many years of “What's going on?” With that, I give you this week's news heap…

Invitation to the Nomination: The gods of 1990s Athens have smiled upon us again with the appearance of 16 tracks from Hall of Fame. The group, composed of Joe Rowe (Bliss, The Glands, The Goons), Jeff Matthews (Jack O'Nuts, The Woggles) and Sherri Brady Carter, spanned styles from grimy, bass-y Louisville/Chicago thinking-man's-rock ("White Gold Theme Song," "Spooky Mexican," "Tokyo Secrets") to fairly straight-up noise-pop numbers ("Trailer Hitch") to pop itself ("New Smell Held"). All of which is a clumsy way of saying it was great. This is the third Rowe-related project to appear online in as many weeks, so hats off to him for being involved with so many notable projects over the years. Old-timers and newcomers, head to halloffameband.bandcamp.com and grab some of this.

Learnin' Letters: Everyone's mind should be sufficiently blown by the late-breaking news that Athens nightclub and event-hosting facility The Bad Manor has changed its name to, simply, Manor. The reason is anyone's guess, and it probably doesn't really matter. Either way, the initial "M" is definitely better than "B.M." (and maybe they'll save on printing, too). An announcement was made last week concerning the establishment's new logo, a big letter "M" with the word "Manor" underneath. It was described by one anonymous source as "pretty much the logo of W Hotels turned upside down," but careful observers will notice that the guys at Manor used a serif font, whereas the slackers at W went on the cheap and purchased no serifs. Although Manor promises "more entertainment and options than ever before"—and who doesn't love a nightclub with "options?"—the above details are literally the most interesting thing about all this. Intrigued? Go to manorathens.com.

Correction: I made a slight mistake when I mentioned Feather Trade a couple of weeks ago, and even though the band was gracious enough to not call me out on it, I'd like to make amends. Pascal Cureton is still performing with the band, albeit in a slightly different role than when it was called Misfortune 500. It's Lemuel Hayes who is no longer performing with the group, having been replaced with Modern Skirts drummer Jon Swint. Sorry for any confusion over this.

You Stay Classy: Longtime Athens hip-hop promoter and performer Montu Miller (AKA Mon2) is hosting a new monthly event at New Earth Music Hall. It's called "First Tuesdays" and begins Tuesday, Aug. 7. As the name implies, it will happen the first Tuesday of every month and feature classic hip-hop and reggae—"classic" being the operative term here, as Miller explicitly says "No Lil Wayne or Top 40"—spun by selector Chief Rocka (AKA Reggie Sykes). Presented by Epic Evenings and AthFactor Entertainment, the event is billed as a series of social mixers for the entire community and seeks to enhance the relationship between "community members, business owners, young professionals and musicians" by steering clear of the same old dull bar chatter and crowds. How they'll do this is kinda what the magic is all about, I suppose, but Montu Miller has a solid history of event-hosting, and I'm sure he's got some ideas up his sleeve. For more information, please see facebook.com/epicevenings and twitter.com/epicevenings.

Chris McKay

Do It Yourself: Chris McKay is planning to record and release some of his non-band songs while both of his groups (The Critical Darlings and The Spinoffs) take a little break. This is not only his first solo outing, but the first material he's released since 2009. So far, he's done one song, with more to be released as they're completed. The initial offering is titled "That Excites Me" and can be found at criticaldarlings.bandcamp.com. The tight rocker clocks in at a mere 2:08, which is A-OK in my book. A full solo album is being considered, though no solid plans have been hatched.

Keep Athens Weird: Local experimental mainstay Craig Lieske (Garbage Island) is curating a series of shows every Wednesday in August at Flicker Theatre & Bar. He'll host a different group of musicians each week, starting Wednesday, Aug. 1, when Lieske will perform sets with Ether Frolic, Killick and George Davidson. Other collaborators will include Jay Gonzalez, The Subliminator and Marshall Marrotte. Keep your eyes peeled to the Flagpole Calendar for each week's schedule. [Gabe Vodicka]

Change Is in the Wind: I neglected to mention at the time that last week's batch of record reviews would be the last to appear in print. This will free us up to start doing local and national reviews—and to publish them on a far more regular basis. Going forward, all reviews will be online-only and published every week. We're doing lots of other exciting stuff online, so point those clickers to Flagpole.com and get to trollin'! [Gabe Vodicka]