Cinemechanica at Lenny's Bar

Its been far too long since one of my favorite bands out of Athens has played in Atlanta. When I listen to Cinemechanica's first album, The Martial Arts (Hello Sir Records), I almost forget that there are actual people playing these guitars. The notes come at you so fast that it doesn't seem possible, and I'm not even going to begin with the drumming. No matter how many times I see them live, I still get blown away by all of the energy and precision packed into their prog-punk-math-guitar-shouting brilliance. I will be the first person at Lenny's on Thursday waiting to get my face melted.

Lenny's Bar - March 1st - 9PM - $5
Cinemechanica
Untied States
CALL ME LIGHTNING!
Black Daniels

Here is thier video for "I'm tired of Paul McCartney", directed by a friend of mine, Josh Borger.

Heart of the Machine

"Heart of the Machine" by Steven Dixey

I've spent my day recovering from the amount of artistic talent packed into the small space at Beep Beep Gallery. Last night was the opening for "Heart of the Machine," a show pairing Steven Dixey's scientific illustration meets war time iconography with Stenvik Mostrom's highly decorative, quasi-cubist beings. The artsists' work match up well with each other, both tending towards symmetry and reflective of tattoos.

At his best, Dixey's work goes further into realism of the two artists', often venturing into the classic territory of the Italian masters. In this show, that trend is seen only in "Oh God of God's, Won't You Protect Me?", a terror ridden landscape that features a mother and child crying out to a visible Satallite/God. His other works are born from the same illustrated realism, only in the context of heraldry among other motiffs. Several pieces include frames either cast or modified by the artist, convincing the viewer that the works are as important as they thought.

Stenvik takes this asthetic in another direction with four very similar compositions. "Furnace", the most interesting and cubo-futurist of the four, shows a figure as part of a midnight factory. A doorway shows the inside of the machine, and literally the inside of the painting, revealing a sculpted heart ablaze in a warm contrast that radiates onto the painting. The figure's stylization reflects the same approach shared by his other, somewhat dark and violent compositions.
"Furnace" by Stenvik Mostrom
"Elk" by Stenvik Mostrom
"Oh God of God's, Won't You Protect Me?" by Steven Dixey

You can stop by the gallery (696 Charles Allen Dr. Atlanta, GA) during their regular hours: 12-6 Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Dear HENSE,

Why would you write over the snowflake guy?

Of Mastodon

I have a theory that everyone in Atlanta wants to go to one if not both of the huge local bands playing this Saturday night. If they don't, they probably should because there is something for everyone. Recently Grammy nominated, prog-metal act Mastodon (Atlanta), and Indie-pop group Of Montreal (Athens, more or less) are both performing and I can't decide who I'd rather see.

On your way to the show, don't forget to stop by Beep Beep Gallery for the opening of their new show, "Heart of the Machine." It includes new work by the prolific Steven Dixey as well as Stenvik Mostram. Show opens at 8, so you'll have time to stop by to check out the art and have a beer before one: you get your face melted by Mastodon, or two: you dance your ass off to Of Montreal.

Note: This flyer was blue, now its orange. I don't know what happened.

Mack Williams tells funny stories...

You may know Mack Williams as the once long time cartoonist for UGA's newspaper, The Red and Black. You may know him as the charismatic front man of local punk comedy band Attractive Eighties Women. You may know him as the animator for [adult swim]'s cartoon Frisky Dingo. You may have taken Drawing 2 with him about 4 years ago. You may not know Mack. He's pretty funny and will be the guest monologist at this weeks Doug Dank Project at Push Push Theater in Decatur. The Doug Dank Project goes down every Wednessday and consists of a long-form, improv comedy show inspired by the personal stories of a featured guest monologist. It starts at 10pm and costs $5.

Also, Macks band Attractive Eighties Women will be playing March 2 at The Star Bar in Little Five Points.

New Thoughts On Old News...

You may or may not remember what happened in Boston not too long ago. You may or may not care anymore. If you are still interested, there are two great responses to the fiasco at Big, Red, and Shiny, a Boston art forum. I was almost tired of talking about this, but these articles are too intelligent, and too interesting not to pass along to anyone who dares to venture on, past the trenches of media induced hysteria and onto the front line of artful critisism.

Epidemik Coalition showcase at Octane

Everyday I go to my mailbox, hoping to find the newest issue of Juxtapoz, but on the way there I pass by three of these stickers in various stages of discoloration.

Epidemik Coalition is a design collective that seem to have a lot going on. The were featured in the MODA's "To a T" t-shirt show, and have just opened up their own online store. You can also find their shirts at Standard boutique here in Atlanta. This Thurday (Feb. 15), Octane Coffee Bar and Lounge will host the opening for an Epidemik Coalition showcase including a screen printing demo by the designers.

Yesterday's Shows

TindleMichi at Foundation One - Exactly what I expected but without the surprises.

Ansley West at Art House Co-op - Black and white versions of photos I'd already seen. (Ansley, if you read this, the color versions that I saw at your UGA exit show where the best in the show, largely due to the more ambiguous titles and vivid colors. Overall this new show was a step backwords for that series. I'd love to talk to you about them, did people not GET the theme?) These were good, but not as good as they once were.

Sam Parker and Keet D'arms at Yo Yo Boutique - A cool collage piece, and then 20 more that looked just like it.

MSG Crew at Village Pizza (cabbage town) - This is a show that I forgot about because the flyer was sort of lame and I didn't know who the MSG Crew was. Turns out I should've known, this stuff was really good. Basically, a bunch of seasoned graffiti artists made restaurant sized work on canvas or various found surfaces. It varies a bit, but generally pretty creative. It sucks that I hit up 3 gallery openings in one night, only to find the most inspiring work is hanging in a pizza place.

The Futurists at the Masquerade - Thanks to Friday's house party/ticket selling scheme featuring Passerby, The Pendletons, and Kill Gorden, I already had tickets to this show so I checked it out. I missed the first couple of bands due to my art show rounds: Morningstate and The Sammies, both solid rock bands that I've seen before. Then The Futurists. Let's just say that The Futurists kick ass. I didn't really know what to expect, I'd done no research of any kind. I had only heard in passing that they were good. They came out and destroyed with loud, epic rock music reminiscent of Muse beating up Radiohead. Or maybe they were making out. Either way, this band was the highlight of my evening.

30% off everything at Youngblood Boutique

T-shirts. Prints. Buttons. Handbags. Hoodies. Paintings. Zines. DIY stuff. Hats made by my friend Chuck's mom. Other hats. Spraypaint. Evereman tables. Jewelry. Posters. Magazines. Crafts. Valentine's day items. Handmade cards. Wallets. Pottery. Clothes. Books. Other things. They have lots of crazy stuff made by artists at Youngblood Gallery and Boutique. This week only (feb 7-11), stuff in the boutique is 30% off.

UPDATE: 40% off everything for the rest of the month!

TindelMichi at Foundation One

For the past couple of weeks, I've been rocking this button that Michi gave me. Thanks Michi.

This pin is a sneak preview of the TindelMichi show coming up at Foundation One Studios in Decatur. If you've never seen a show at Foundation One, let me tell you, they know what they are doing over there. Every show I've seen there is so well put together, and there is always something really creative going on. These guys make urban art look like the reason fine art galleries exist. I can't say enough about how great a space this is and how lucky we are in Atlanta to have a steady stream of art shows that consistently put me in awe.

As for TindelMichi, you've probably seen their stuff around and know what to expect: Basquiat compositions meet dirty south imagery. I think this show is going to be a little more focused than usual, sticking to skulls and addressing how they have become a cliche of consumerism and pop culture. Do yourself a favor and make sure to check out this show when it opens, Saturday, February 10, 7-11pm.

I just got blown away by the new Snowden video

Snowden is a little band from Atlanta that has gotten a lot of hype from their album "Anti-Anti". The verdict seems to be that anyone who doesn't like it either thinks that the songs are all a bit too similar, or they just aren't into new wave drone. I personally love the album, but not as much as their video for "Like Bullets". Music videos have always been the perfect canvas for experimentation and has given way to the more creative film makers of our time (Gondry, Jonze, etc). The commercialization of music videos, on the other hand, has led to some of the worst film makers of our time. But it seems that independent music will continue to do for the music video what it has done for music. This video is awesome. I stopped halfway through the video to type this post.

Update: looks like this video has been around for a few weeks longer than I thought. Its still awesome though.


While I'm on the subject of music videos, here is the new video from The Gaskets.