Tabishland

Anybody else think Kate Pierson is kind of cool?

Name another geek and freak band from Athens.

Pete Buck beaten anybody up on a plane lately?
 

Well I've always loved Kate Pierson. Check out the "Deadbeat Club" vid for more of these two.

And yeah, I'm a huge B-52s fan.

Both bands have new CDs as I'm sure you're aware.
 

Anybody else think Michael Stipe looks like a dork in this video?

And if you want a great freak and geek band from Athens, GA, you should purchase the best of by Pylon called 'Hits'. This was the best band from Athens, GA, in that timeframe.

Of course, Athens has had a strong local scene for a while. These are a few other bands that got their start there:

Flat Duo Jets
Squalls
Dreams So Real
Love Tractor
Chickasaw Mudd Puppies

Then there is the list of bands that played a gig or two (or more) in Athens on their way around the country. That would be a very long list, but quite a few of those bands have deep southern roots, a la Let's Active or Southern Culture on the Skids (two Carolina bands Tim may have seen).
 

So what is it about Athens that makes it such a musical hotbed?
 

We have a winner! I think Pylon shows up in some documentary about the Athens scene (title? Emann?). REM et al always cite them, but I think most of the band works odd jobs now. REM's first non-Athens concert was at the Cat's Cradle in nearby Carrboro, btw.

E: can you give me an executive summary of the Athens-NC music axis: Let's Active, the dBs, REM, Cat's Cradle, the Connells, Arrogance, Don Dixon, Merge records, Mitch Easter. I've always wondered about the connections therein....
 

Anybody heard or/like Shark Quest:
Southern Gothic+Phillip Glass with cellos, banjos and a rock backbeat.
 

Did everyone catch Nell's KSU allusion; nice to remember since so few do.

On a lighter note:
big fan of Black Keys, NMissAllstars and that droning Miss highland blues sound.
 

Many large college campuses are musical hotbeds. I need extra fingers and toes to count off all of the really cool local bands I've seen in Morgantown since 1985. Tim pointed out the KSU reference to Ohio and the Neil Young song about the shootings there. One of those killed was a very close friend of KSU art student Jerry Casale. Jerry and his friend Mark Mothersbaugh formed DEVO not long afterwards. All the print on the 'Akron Scene' back when we were in high school never really noted how those bands mainly played KSU. Kent and Akron are 20 miles apart and very different places. Devo, the Rubber City Rebels, Tin Huey, and many others had a better audience at Kent State than most any tavern in Akron.
 

Tim, as to your query about a common thread among the bands you list, I'd say it is Mitch Easter and his Drive-In Studio. It was a cheap place to record and it usually sounded good. Mitch had relationships with many bands you noted. He was the main driver of Let's Active.

He and Chris Stamey had a mid-70s band called Sneakers. After breaking up, Chris formed the dB's.

Mitch produced the first REM single on Hib-Tone records - Radio Free Europe.

He produced early acclaimed albums by the Windbreakers (of Mississippi), the Connells, and Game Theory (San Francisco).

I think he and Don Dixon became friends and solid producing partners. Mitch has enginnered quite a few albums that Don produced.

How long is the drive between Athens, GA, and Chapel Hill, NC? Both places had strong local music scenes. Having friends come in from out of town to open a gig is a frequent way to spread the news about a great band.
 

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There is a portion of the Athens documentary on line that features Pylon. Here's the Youtube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9OuD6xagLE

It's one of my fave Pylon songs, but it obviously does not follow what the band is doing on stage. Just look at all that energy though. Wish I had seen their show.
 

Thanks, E.

My sense is the Cat's Cradle and more recently Merge Records was/is part of that southern alt/indie nexus. Ben Folds and the Squirrel Nut Zippers are another local product.

Athens is about 4 or 5 hours drive.

Know what Mitch Easter is doing now? How about Marty Jones? And what was the final word on Pete Buck's plane freakout?
 

I think the Cat's Cradle has been a Chapel Hill rock club for a few decades. Nuthin' new on that.

Mitch Easter has a fabulous new album out called 'Dynamico'. I'm diggin' it. If you liked Let's Active, then you would be wise to find 'Dynamico'.

Not sure about Marti Jones. I think she is still married to Don Dixon. It looks like her last album was in 2002.

BTW, lots of great bio and record reviews at www.allmusic.com

Never was sure about the Pete Buck freak out. Maybe he was re-enacting an old Twilight Zone epi.
 

I'm on board w/ Ben Folds and Squirrel Nut Zippers. Had to miss Ben Folds @ IUP last year b/c of a scheduling conflict (mine, not theirs).