Interview with Jimi Kritzler of Slug Guts (Playing the EARL Saturday, Oct. 6)

By Jhoni Jackson Brisbane, Australia’s Slug Guts are a little frightening. The band’s third and latest LP, Playin’ in Time with the Deadbeat on Sacred Bones Records, is dark in spirit, a post-punk jaunt in the glorification of the grotesque. Freakish sax accents drums that echo as if recorded in a dungeon, and singer James Dalgleish—or […]

Interview with Buffi Aguero from the Subsonics; Playing 529 tonight (Sept. 27)

Talk about tried and true: Atlanta’s Subsonics have been on the garage-punk grind since the early ‘90s. There have been some quiet years, sure, but they seem to have bumped the pace up to a trot since playing the Mess-Around last year, playing several shows after, including the Drive Invasion earlier this month. They’ve got […]

Little 5 Fest Lineup Additions: Ponderosa and Reptar

By Jhoni Jackson Little 5 Fest has just added two hometown heavy hitters to its already massive lineup: Ponderosa and Reptar. Criminal Records will host both bands, both of which are set for later than the Little Five Points record store is typically open. Psych-tinged, Southern-rock rooted Ponderosa will play at 9:30 p.m., then eclectic […]

Interview with Bryan Bankovich of Little 5 Fest (September 29th)

By Jhoni Jackson There’s only one strictly local fest in Atlanta that dares to reach all points of the city’s vast spectrum of genres: Little 5 Fest, which goes down on Saturday, Sept. 29. The day-long event completely encompasses the eclectic neighborhood of Little Five Points, consuming venues like Aurora Coffee, the Clothing Warehouse, Tijuana […]

Q&A With Jeffrey Novak Of Cheap Time; Playing The EARL Tomorrow, Sept. 15

By Jhoni Jackson Though they hail from the garage-punk hotbed of Nashville, Cheap Time is far more complex than that. Many of their genre counterparts are excellent bands in their own right, but oftentimes they rely more on attitude than musicianship. Jeffrey Novak, Cheap Time’s frontman, boasts both. Even through decidedly lo-fi recordings, the intricacy […]

Interview with Ruby Velle & the Soulphonics, playing the EARL tonight and tomorrow (September 13th &14th)

By Jhoni Jackson Blame meticulousness for the delay in Ruby Velle & the Soulphonic’s debut LP. Before the Atlanta band could kill any of its darlings, first they had to grow and nurture them—slowly and carefully, in the most scrupulous way imaginable. Only minutes into It’s About Time and it’s obvious: It was worth the […]

Interview with Sultan Bathery; Playing 529 tomorrow, August 18

By Jhoni Jackson Italian trio Sultan Bathery is ripping through the states on their first American tour, and Atlanta marks the final stop in that three-week bout. That means this brand-new band—they released their first EP, Fireworx, on Slovenly Recordings only two months ago—will likely have their set finely tuned for a furious blowout. Expect […]

Interview with Jonny Corndawg; Playing 529 Tonight

By Jhoni Jackson The boundaries of country music are somewhat rigid. While the old-school outlaws like Haggard, Kristofferson and Coe are still kicking, these days it’s the shiny, bejeweled mainstream brand that serves as the genre’s spokesman. Alt-country staples like the Drive-by Truckers, Ryan Adams and Deer Tick, a band Fritz is pals with, shouldn’t […]

5GB with Bloodshot Bill; playing the EARL tonight, July 11

By Jhoni Jackson If Jerry Lee Lewis were on the up-and-up today, he’d have an intimidating rival in the Montreal-made one-man-show known as Bloodshot Bill. That’s because Bill’s boogie woogie bedrock is just as sturdy—but, unlike Lewis, Bill does it alone. It’s a one-man-show of grit and sweat and punk-bred fury to the beat of […]

5GB With Paint Fumes; Playing The Earl Wednesday, July 11

By Jhoni Jackson If Troma Entertainment had wanted a band on retainer for its raunchier early ‘70s flicks, Paint Fumes would have easily been a go-to group. While they look a little glam at times—mostly because frontman Elijah Von Cramon often sports neck scarves, patterned blouses and other accoutrement excavated from the prettier aspects of […]

Live Review: Tenacious D @ the Tabernacle, June 25

By Jhoni Jackson, Photo by Hillymonster Photography When a giant inflated winged creature with a huge, err, phallus for its centerpiece is the least loud, absurd and vulgar thing onstage, it can only mean one thing: You’re watching Tenacious D perform. The mock-rock duo (Jack Black and Kyle Gass—but you already knew that, right?) hit […]

Interview with Phil Jones of Dog Bite; Playing the EARL, tonight, June 21

By Jhoni Jackson Dropping out of art school and moving back home could do well to clog an 18-year-old’s creative flow. But when Phil Jones left the SCAD’s Savannah campus four years ago, he stumbled upon a new medium for materializing his ideas: music. “I was bored because all my friends were still in Savannah,” […]

Catching up with Knaves Grave; Playing the EARL Friday, June 8th

By Jhoni Jackson It’s always a struggle for a fledgling band to find sure footing, much less overcome multiple member changes and a year-long hiatus. But Atlanta’s Knaves Grave seems to have defeated the odds, even managing to snag a slew of covetable spots opening for seasoned bands. Without having released a thing save for […]