Monday, January 31, 2011

Ricer live on Wednesday, December 8th, 2010

Hey everyone,

here is a live video of RICER that was filmed at the Drunken Unicorn on Wednesday, December 8th, 2010.

Alien Abduction is THIS Thursday!



The Alien Abduction party is happening this Thursday!

Featuring:

Daxclamation!



Recently i was named Creative Loafing's "Best Drag Queen in Atlanta"! i am very honored and completely surprised to have received such an honor based entirely on reader submissions! Thank you Atlanta! you keep surprising me!

Daxclamation! on Facebook

ShaMona Jackson



Female Impersonator, Impersonator and one Super Bitch of a Drag Queen !

ShaMona Jackson on Facebook

Java

and

Tom Tom

with Space Girl 3000, Wigdan Giddy and Skooter

FREE! 21+
Doors at 10 pm

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Today The Moon, Tomorrow The Sun is performing on Saturday, February 12th, 2011

Performer Magazine presents:

Today The Moon, Tomorrow The Sun on Saturday, February 12th



Today the Moon, Tomorrow the Sun is about the collaborative. It’s about the connections between sound and people. It’s about the heart and the head. It’s for mistakes and triumphs, and against arrogance and underconfidence. Today the Moon, Tomorrow the Sun is a band of four. 2 boys. 2 girls. Noisy. Dancy. Loud. Sincere. Sweaty. Loveable. Hardworking. Fun. Touring full-time since August '09 You can find Today the Moon, Tomorrow the Sun on I-tunes, Emusic, Rhapsody, and Grooveshark.

We're trying to keep some video diaries of our tour adventures...
Check out tour vlogs here

Today The Moon, Tomorrow The Sun on Facebook

Cusses are the second act of the evening.



"First of let me start with a huge THANK YOU for this opportunity to get to know the band and the killer photos. Alrighty down to business.
1. How in the world did the name CUSSES come about to be?

Cuss is an old southern term. “a lil ol cuss” means a lil rascal. We thought we were all lil ol rascals trying to make some music!

2. Your 3rd release is come out November 16, what is going to be different from this ep’s than the previous 2?

Our goal is that each ep is better than the last. We are trying to make them better as well as ourselves with each show.

3. The band seems to have a push and pull of energy at the shows, giving back double to the audience the more we push towards the music, is that by accident or a conscious choice to create a connection with the fans?

There are always accidents, but we def are always trying to give every bit of our emotion and energy to the crowd. We want you to feel it in every bit of your body and soul. Otherwise what’s the point of coming to the show!?

4. I’ve noticed fashionable following w/varied versions of Angel’s style, is that something that has taken you by surprise? Does it present a challenge?

Def by surprise, this is the second time I’ve heard of it! I’m flattered. My challenge is being comfortable! Although, I do like to focus more on the music and not what I’m wearing as I learned from my first show. I wore a cute ol’ vintage dress and by the end: I had broken the zipper and both the straps had ripped off! So my challenge is that my attire is flexible and comfy!

5. Lyrically the songs seem to be asking questions, searching for an answer , expressing the raw human experience. Is writing a collaborative group effort?

We all write the songs together quite fast musically, but lyrically I write most of the songs. Brian the drummer, (my boyfriend and music partner), has written a few with me and some of those are my favorite. But mostly I have written the lyrics. I think what you asked is quite correct. My goal is to write positively about my experiences no matter what they were and no matter if I’ve found the answers to them yet or not. I’ve had a very colorful past which enables me to write very emotional songs. I want people to feel the pain but also feel the joy of coming through any experience with a more positive perception of today and tomorrow.

6. What would you like to have happen within the Savannah, Low Country, southern east coast music scene?

We would like to see Savannah be more of a stop for bigger bands! Be more of a destination where people want and need to come here to see their fans and make more! Love to see as many local kids trying and doing there best to build the music scene here back up.
7.What is next?

We would like to make all of our out of town shows feel like a hometown show. Because there is nothing better than playing in Savannah to our home peeps that have made us who we are!

A little history…

Brian Lackey, drummer, and Bryan Harder both went to SCAD 15 yrs ago and played in a couple punk bands together back then. That’s what makes them so bad ass together! Angel and Brian were in California, paying too much rent and not making enough music ,so he suggested Savannah. Closer to our families and peeps, he told me how beautiful it was here, less expensive, a great support network of people and plenty of musicians for collaborations. A year ago in Aug. we moved back, Brian and Bryan started to play together again. Bryan Harder from New Jersey had stayed in Savannah, became an architect, had a family, two little boys and a wife, professor at SCAD and hadn’t played out since Lackey left ten years ago! They had asked me to sit in, which I was a little apprehensive about for a few months, mainly because I wanted my boyfriend to have his own music thing going on and not overkill our relationship with too much of anything! But when I finally did, it meshed so well, we had four songs in minutes and we all knew right then we had to do something together. It’s rare to find musicians where the chemistry is so good that everytime you get together you have 4 new songs everytime you practice!" - Coco Devine / XTMag.net

Cusses on Facebook

Baby Baby are the openers.



There comes a time in every bands life when they must ask their selves “what are we doing?” Yeah we know life gets rough but, it’s the music that makes you want to forget about that sorry stuff. What are we doing? We are playing music!! Music that makes us dance, makes us sing, makes us want to keep playing songs for you with every entangled organ we own. We’ve heard the sad stuff and that just isn’t going to do. Truly ask yourself, look deep inside you and search for the answer… when was the last time you got your face painted? When was the last time you danced to some fun rock, baby? Tomorrow the light.

Baby Baby on Facebook

$7, 18+
Doors @ 9 pm

Friday, January 28, 2011

Friday, February 11th, Darwin Deez will be performing at the Drunken Unicorn

Darwin Deez is performing at the Drunken Unicorn on Friday, February 11th.



"Some of our finest musicians, the ones most capable of commanding attention onstage or blaring through the speakers of a radio, can often seem aloof and reclusive in real life. They can sometimes seem like total polar opposites to their public demeanour, or, unfortunately, in some instances, they can sometimes be downright disappointing (too many to name). And then there are the true pop stars among us; the ones blessed with rare, innate qualities, who shine just as vibrantly offstage as on, who have the genetic good fortune to be able to write whip-smart, life- affirming, heart-swelling songs, and at the same time say all sorts of funny and clever and entertaining things, and without whom the cultural landscape would be that much greyer and duller. No one illustrates this distinction more so than young Darwin Deez.

Whether expounding on the virtues of open mic nights in Manhattan and Brooklyn, writing about the hair-care routine for his magnificent ‘fro (hot water and drip dry, for the record) or praising the guitar sounds of (yes!) Jimmy Eat World, Deez simply can’t help but be utterly enthralling. His songs – delightfully twisted, gorgeously off kilter slices of perfect pop meanwhile, are naturally nothing less than absolutely captivating too, sort of like Arthur Russell if someone spiked his drinks with happy pills.

And much like the best pop stars, Deez started young. Born in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, to parents who were avid Meher Baba disciples, the first chapter of Deez’s musical career began when he was given a guitar for this 11th birthday. “It was a cream Fender Strat which I actually still use”, he recalls. “My dad taught me some chords and I started writing songs straight away, writing the lyrics on these real small 3×5 cards”. Listening to a diet of Weezer, Nirvana and Nada Surf – “stuff that was mass marketed in 1996” – Deez started a band at the ripe old age of 12 with a friend called Black Moon. “The lyrics and chords were quite simple and predictable. It was just kind of an imitation of what we thought was poetry”. He received healthy encouragement from his parents to boot however, with family friends even recommending cool records to buy for Deez. “Yeah, like Superchunk, Fugazi and Archers of Loaf. That was pretty amazing”.

A year later however, Deez heard a Chemical Brothers song and fell out of love with indie rock, albeit temporarily, throwing his lot in instead with electronic music: he even saved up his money to buy drum machines and samplers and began to experiment with making drum and bass himself. “I heard my first Chemical Brothers song and thought, “This is the music of the future”’” he says now. In a strange twist of fate, it wasn’t until he was about 18 years old when a cousin pulled him back from the brink by playing him, of all things, bombastic Emo merchants Jimmy Eat World’s “Your New Aesthetic” on a pre-iPod mp3 player, that he swung 180 degrees and ended up firmly in the rock camp once again. “There was such a rich guitar sound, that made me realise what I had been missing out on”, he laughs. “Actually, when I left high school and went to Wesleyan I tried to start my own band, and our goal was to emulate Q and not U and 90 Day Men, whose first albums are two of my favourite ever. Our one practice was rife with potential, but there were too many busy schedules. Our name was Miso Cardigan”.

Ah yes, Wesleyan University, Deez’s personal bĂȘte noire. Even though the college is now synonymous with the burgeoning AmazingBoyChairMGMTViolensCrisis music nexus in Brooklyn, upon leaving his native Carolina and entering its hallowed halls at 18, Deez found himself, for the first time, cast adrift, lonely and in “a really dark place. It was many things; it was being away from home for the first time, and it was not having much in common with anyone there. I thought I was going to meet people who I was going to be friends with for the rest of my life, and it wasn’t like that at all. I guess I just didn’t choose the right environment for myself”.

The “right environment” however, turned out to be in New York City. There, Deez started to become a fixture on Monday nights at the Sidewalk Cafe in the East Village, billed as “the legendary stomping ground for NYC’s Anti-folk scene”. Hailed for producing anti-folk luminaries such as Regina Spektor, Adam Green and countless others, Deez felt like he had finally found his niche. “It was the real hub of the action for me, and it was exciting to be there because most nights the audiences were so attentive, and so into it, even the first bands on. I became inspired to write better lyrics by studying the other songwriter-performers there”. Galvanised and rejuvenated by this new scene – Deez was even asked to join Creaky Boards by its founder, Andrew Hoepfner – Deez got himself some Casio keyboards and wrote a “lo-fi pop song”. That song turned out to be “Deep Sea Divers”, and it ended up being the first of a whole new batch of songs; the first, Deez says, “where I used my own voice since I was 13. That’s when I felt like I had found something”.

A lilting, shimmering gem of a pop song, gently witty but streaked with dashes of melancholy, “Deep Sea Divers” encapsulates exactly what makes Darwin Deez stand out so effortlessly from the rest of the pack. In roughly three minutes he manages to cram in gloriously addictive melodies, deliciously off-kilter wordplay about a crumbling relationship (“little yellow fish are happy, it’s not so tough/ would everything you wish you had be good enough?”) and his beautifully rough around the edges croon to create an instant classic, at once deeply infectious yet also undeniably affecting. By now you would probably have heard his (long since sold out) debut single “Constellations”, complete with handclaps and his opening crib of “Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star”, but, come April 12, when his debut, self-titled album drops, there will be many, many more songs to treasure, from the brightly scrubbed anthem in waiting “Radar Detector”, to the barbed riposte “Bad Day” (sample lyric: “I hope that the last page of your 800 page novel is missing”) to the plaintive, lovelorn croon of “The Bomb Song”, all of which he wrote and recorded entirely on his own, in his apartment, on one mike on his PC.

Another thing to look forward to in 2010? Deez’s live shows, extravaganzas of unbridled energy and unfettered joy, each and every one of them, with him being known to break into spontaneous bouts of synchronised dancing mid-song (an extension of which can be seen in his widely circulated viral Youtube video, “The Spring Dance”). “Well, I love to dance”, Deez laughs. “Michelle, my bandmate is a tap dancer, and I’m secretly pretty good at it as well, so we take it up another notch onstage. But when we play live, the bottom-line is, we want all the people outside the room to come in, and we want the people inside the room to really enjoy themselves. I want people to get into it the way audiences at the Sidewalk Cafe got into shows, people would tell jokes onstage, and if you told them to clap, they’d clap”.

Like we said, Darwin Deez is a true original. He talks about his songs being “a little bit “Thriller”, a bit Dismemberment Plan”. He gets as excited about new bands like Everything Everything as he does about the new John Mayer album (although he confesses that it was “not really for me”). And he laughs off any spurious vocal comparisons to Julian Casablancas, saying “I love the Strokes, and I get the similarity, but he draaaaaaaaaws his words out”. He is a singularly brilliant, hilarious, complex, entertaining individual, and writes songs that will make you want to bust out your dancing shoes while also touching that raw, emotional nerve in your body. He is everything a pop star should be and so rarely is. Embrace him now, before everyone else does…"

Darwin Deez on Facebook

Friends are performing second.



tlc adam ant the germs LION KING jackson 5 danceteria esg ariel rosenberg the cosby show garage band yaaaa knoooow

Friends on Facebook

Nomen Novum is the opener.



"Instead of a lick, beat, or lyric, the Atlanta-based Nomen Novum open their EP
Go Primal with an extended sample of a conversation between two young men and a somewhat loopy-sounding grandma selling trinkets and baubles at the side of the road. Real life ‘found sound’ samples can be a somewhat tiresome exercise if done improperly, especially if they overtake the song (or displace it altogether): ‘adolescent girl from weirdo atomic age moral hygiene instructional film confessing her aberrant desires against a wall of feedback’ was practically its own subgenre in the mid-90s. But when you hit the nail on the head, the most mundane samples can achieve a glowing, transcendent appeal, which lifts a song from the realm of the ordinary into the extraordinary. Nomen Novum show how ‘found sound’ samples are done right; the band whips up not just a fine collection of indie rock songs, but a stage on which they can be performed, a whole universe for them to inhabit, in the croaking frogs, hot Fourth of Julys, and drunken karaoke nights of their native South.

After the initial opening sample, the title track "Go Primal" eases the album into more conventional compositional structures. A sweet guitar lick floats over the top, a bass begins to stir, percussion picks up a regular beat, a voice sings "We are the ones that our parents warned us about", and before you know it, you're knee deep in the refrain and the song is in full swing. The compositions of Nomen Novum have a habit of sneaking up on (and stealing away from) the listener. Like a junky pickup truck coming around a slow curve, "Go Primal" builds up speed before turning the corner and trundling back into nothing. "White Trash" repeats the same strategy with a sample of a flowing river instead of a loony grandma. When the electro-drum machine kicks in with the robotic beat as Nomen Novum chants a dancehall anthem over the top, you realize that this band occupies a very odd place on the musical spectrum. A little lo-fi, a little found sound, a little dirty south, and a whole lot of experimental. "White Trash", which is probably the closest thing they have to a traditional single, takes a full minute to warm up into your conventional song and then takes a full minute-and-a-half to wind down through a noise rock haze. That's a lot of intro/outro for a four-minute song. Not exactly your cookie-cutter iTunes single.

If you're a music reviewer that is accustomed to decrying bands as ‘self indulgent’ for appending fifteen seconds of feedback to a song, then the excesses of Go Primal will probably push you over the edge. Or maybe not. There aren't any real rules in music except one: make it good. If it's good, you can get away with just about anything. On the track "It's In The Air", Nomen Novum pieces together a musical collage that manages to coalesce without the traditional percussive glue. A guitar strum, a background choir, and a live recording of a few kids shooting off bottle rockets mesh into a mantric elegy of superlative beauty. The crisp crackle of a lit fuse has never sounded so sublime. It's amazing that real songs can be conjured up out of such haphazard elements. The pair behind Nomen Novum, David Norbery and Mark Godfrey, have a great ear for coaxing consonance and harmony out of the dissonant and disparate - although trying to transmogrify a live recording of a drunken karaoke session into the song "Torn Karaoke" is probably wasted effort.

Go Primal is a perfect example of music that is experimental without veering into eye-rolling territory. The adventurous edge of their ‘found sound’ shenanigans provides an intrigue that is all the more interesting for not always hitting the mark. Nomen Novum have found a really refreshing style that can wander in and out of traditional pop structures and southern narratives without warning. You may not know what you're hearing, but you'll like what you heard." - Mike Gutierrez / Qro Magazine

Nomem Novum on Facebook

$10 in adv, $12 DOS, 18+
Doors @ 9 pm

Advance tickets available @ Ticket Alternative, Criminal Records,
Decatur CD, Fantasyland Records and the following CD Warehouse locations: Buford, Duluth, Kennesaw, Lawrenceville and Roswell.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Washed Out has rescheduled for Thursday, February 10th

Tight Bros and Ok Productions presents

Washed Out on Thursday, February 10th, 2011, this is the rescheduled show for the cancelled show that was to occur on Tuesday, January 18th.



Washed Out is Ernest Greene, a young guy from Georgia (via South Carolina) who makes bedroom synthpop that sounds blurred and woozily evocative, like someone smeared Vaseline all over an early OMD demo tape, then stayed up all night trying to recreate what they heard. To hear Greene tell it, he’s only been making music as Washed Out for a couple of months. – Pitchfork

Washed Out on Facebook

ANR are the second act of the evening.



“…utterly awesome, how have I never heard of this before?”
Sean Adams, Drowned In Sound

“fully formed and totally enjoyable”
Pitchfork

“A marvel of melodic majesty, file next to Jamie Lidell, MGMT”
The Guardian

“One of the newest exponents of this growing tropical bohemia”
New York Times

“post apocalyptic Disney sondtrack music”
Nylon

“the driving beats of TV On The Radio blended with the psychedelic sweetness of Passion Pit”
MTV Buzzworthy Band

ANR website

Soft Powers are the opener.



"Soft Powers is a band out of Suwannee, GA who met through a mutual friend in the middle of 2010 and have been collaborating together ever since. The group consists of Bo Fletcher on guitars/bass/drums/programming and Dylan Anderson on vocals/guitar/drums/programming. Released in August (2010), “Bad Pop” marks their impressive first full-length release.

The 8-song, 21-minute album can be best described as “art pop rock.” There is a fuzzy, grainy quality to the music (especially the vocals). Juxtaposed against the album’s dreamy pop foundation, the resulting sound is jarring but contagious. “Bad Pop” breaks down to a combination of catchy, upbeat drums, mixed with charming and over processed vocals, driven by a fat, funky bass line and pop friendly guitar melodies.

The album opens up with the head bobbing “Moon Culture,” immediately trapping listeners in the album. Next, the eclectic but irresistible “Strawberry Soup” continues the momentum with a tale about raining strawberry soup. After an abstract and entertaining interlude phone call to someone named Tim Durmah, “Dr. Phillip David Collins” sneaks in and implants one of those viral guitar riffs that seems to stick in the mind long after hearing the song.

The next three tracks flow in line with the previous four songs, setting up a powerful and resonating finish. “Mary Never Sings Our Songs” is the only down tempo song on the album but brings it to a calm, contemplative, and satisfying end. Ironically, Anderson sings “And maybe I could sing you a song, yeah such a boring one.”" - Christ Khodadadi / Atlanta Local Music Examiner

Soft Powers on Facebook

$10, 18+
Doors @ 9 pm

Advance tickets available @ Ticket Alternative, Criminal Records,
Decatur CD, Fantasyland Records and the following CD Warehouse locations: Buford, Duluth, Kennesaw, Lawrenceville and Roswell.

If you want to win a FREE pair of tickets to this show, be the first to comment stating that you want the tickets!

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Live video of The Feeding Fingers from their performance on Saturday, January 22nd, 2011

Hey everyone,

here is a live video of "No Movement In Water" by the Feeding Fingers recorded at the Drunken Unicorn on Saturday, January 22nd, 2011.

On Tuesday, February 8th Wild Nothing will be performing.

Tight Bros presents

Wild Nothing on Tuesday, February 8th, 2011



Wild Nothing is the solo project of Virginia born Jack Tatum, who’s music is the product of an unhealthy obsession with nostalgia. Equal parts teenage wasteland and inexplicable regret, his songs are the kind that could only be made by the young at heart. Unlike the current herd of one-man bedroom bands, Tatum creates complex textural environments that aim for something higher. Melodies that yearn to stay with you. Warped interpretations of Johnny Marr’s guitar work and The Cure’s careful synth arrangements. Dreamy, catchy, and intriguing. Here’s to missing your youth.

Wild Nothing on Facebook

Abe Vigoda are the second performer of the evening.



Those who clocked Abe Vigoda’s transition from 2006’s debut Kid City to 2008’s startling tropical-punk “Skeleton” should know the LA quartet aren’t ones for repeating themselves. To Skeleton’s hot-hot-hot template, they now add glassy shards of ‘cold wave’ pop, with synthesisers, sequencers and altogether broodier beats. Scorching temperatures, icy currents... CRUSH is a thermal column of vertiginous brilliance!But let’s not get bogged down in categories. Just as Skeleton was difficult to define, Crush is a similar collision of sound, another helter-skelter joy ride through four boys’ private party. Even so, there was a thought process behind this new surge. In 2009 Dane Chadwick replaced drummer Reggie Guerro, introducing a new style of regimented beats as well as other musical ideas to the table. “More than just rhythmically, Dane helped with melodies and most of the electronics on the album,” says vocalist Michael Vidal.

Abe Vigoda on Facebook

Roman Photos are the openers.



Roman Photos have crafted a sound that is by turn a romantic yet urban blend of various kinds of electronic music. Taking cues from genres like disco, synth-pop, techno and trip-hop, they bring emotion to a genre more known for atmospheres and rhythm.

“Here’s what’s cool about this: the wistful vocals that float effortlessly above the music, the buzzing density of the entire song, the warm thump drawn out from minimal techno and into a more rock-based world. “Decline” works because of its low-key unpretentious aspirations. It could easily be just another hazy dance track in a year full of hazy dance tracks, but the attention to detail—the little key pings and surprisingly confident vocals make it stand out.” –The Fader

Roman Photos on Facebook

$10, 18+
Doors @ 9 pm

Advance tickets available @ Ticket Alternative, Criminal Records,
Decatur CD, Fantasyland Records and the following CD Warehouse locations: Buford, Duluth, Kennesaw, Lawrenceville and Roswell.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Audiophile is appearing on Saturday, February 5th

Audiophile will be headlining the Drunken Unicorn on Saturday, February 5th, 2011.



"For the last 8 months I have been building and working with three musicians to create what we are calling "Audiophile". This is my new band." - Brennan Johnson

Audiophile on Myspace

Pocket The Moon are the second band of the evening.



Pocket the Moon is an indie/alternative/folk band from Atlanta, Georgia, consisting of Sara Crawford (voted Best Local Songwriter of 2010 in Creative Loafing) and Geoff Goodwin (formerly of The Cult Following, Goodland, and Nigh Eve). Combining soulful vocal melodies with layered and skilled instrumentation, Pocket the Moon produces a unique and mellow sound.

Pocket The Moon on Facebook

Ether Overdrive are the first performer of the evening.



Ether Overdrive is a driving Indie Rock band based in Atlanta, Georgia, consisting of Chase Adkison (Nigh Eve, The Dali Standard, Novo Luna, Goodland), Josh Copland (Nigh Eve, The Dali Standard, Goodland), and David Wood (The Zach Hurley Band, Hidebound, One On The Table). They combine thumping beats with catchy riffs and vocal melodies to provide a unique musical experience. Ether Overdrive is currently working on their first album.

Ether Overdrive's website

$5, 21+
Doors @ 9 pm

Friday, January 21, 2011

Photos of Small Black, Class Actress and Living Rooms from 10/26/2010

Hey everyone,

The Drunken Unicorn TARDIS is now taking us to 10/26/2010 when Small Black, Class Actress and Living Rooms performed at the Drunken Unicorn.

Thanks to Ryan James for these photos.

Small Black:





Class Actress:





Living Rooms:

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

The Red River are performing on Wednesday, February 2nd

The Red River will be performing at the Drunken Unicorn on Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011



"The Red River was more legend than band when I first heard them—all hushed whispers and home-dubbed cassettes. They were from Long Beach, Calif. Dhani Rosa from Eskimo and Sons said they “taught us everything we know,” and Eskimo and Sons was a band that knew a lot about sending shivers up and down my spine.

When I first saw them—in the basement of the PSU student center—they took my heart whole. French horn! Singalongs! Sincerity! The full-throated choruses and clamor of horns and clattering drums of their first album, Grassblades, has never been more than a month out of my steady rotation since. A line from that album, “You are something good, and so am I,” saw me through some of my toughest times.

I saw them again in the winter, a semi-secret house party on Northeast Beech Street. I brought a bottle of wine and shared it with their lead singer, Bill Roberts. We all sang together, warming that little living room with our earnest breath.

They moved up here, I heard, but sadly I missed the one show I heard about. They were working on a record, but there was no timeline. Then I heard nothing.

If it feels like I’m talking about myself, it’s only to explain my anxiousness about hearing the Red River’s new album, Little Songs about the Big Picture. Can they still bring that warmth, that grace, that big-heartedness that shone through those ramshackle shows? Would they lose the innocent wonder of that earlier album?

Good news: They enter honestly. “We have nothing more than what we are born with,” Roberts sings, joined by the full band in chorus. And if, by four songs into the album, any doubts remain—they are blasted to pieces by the joyous horn that opens “I Will Give Thanks.”

“I threw my heart out/ like a spinning, sharp tomahawk,” they sing. And maybe that’s what really grabs and holds me about the Red River—their willingness to venture fearlessly out of the comfortable world of metaphor and into the uneasy and uneven terrain of autobiography.

It’s embarrassing at times. Some lyrics feel forced or awkward, as on the standout “Dirty Dave”: “You wrote poems about God and lighters/ and read them to me in all-night diners.”

But as face-reddening as it can be, Little Songs About the Big Picture redeems itself instantly and repeatedly with its purity and honesty. The lyrics say it better than I can: “Any time something is lost, it can be rebuilt/ And any time something is rebuilt, it can be broken again/ And any time something is broken, you can learn from it/ And any time you learn from something broken, you can change for good, for good.”" - Willamette Weekly

The Red River on Facebook

Ricer are the opener.



"Ricer regularly lay waste to every other band in the city both with their songwriting as well as their live shows. The three shows I've seen give me hope for our otherwise fairly lethargic local scene." - Euroschilds on Creative Loafing

Ricer on Facebook

$5 in adv, $7 DOS, 21+
Doors @ 9 pm

Advance tickets available @ Ticket Alternative, Criminal Records,
Decatur CD, Fantasyland Records and the following CD Warehouse locations: Buford, Duluth, Kennesaw, Lawrenceville and Roswell.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Smith Westerns are performing at the Drunken Unicorn on Tuesday, February 1st

Tight Bros presents

Smith Westerns at the Drunken Unicorn on Tuesday, February 1st, 2011



"Chicago's the Smith Westerns are a band looking for some teenage kicks with their home-brewed mixture of garage, glam, and punk, and they come by their youthful energy honestly -- none of the group members were old enough to buy a beer when they released their first album. The Smith Westerns were formed in 2007 by Max Kakacek and Cullen Omori, who at the time were students at Chicago's Northside College Preparatory School; the two had been turned on to '60s garage rock through compilations like Nuggets and Back from the Grave, and they decided it was music they could play without knowing too much about technique. As Kakacek and Omori began learning to play guitars, they drafted Cameron Omori, Cullen's brother, to play bass, and with the three members taking turns on drums, the Smith Westerns were born. Within a year, the band was steady enough to be booked into some of Chicago's better rock clubs, including Schuba's and the Empty Bottle, while also playing lots of house parties on the side, which helped win them a loyal local following. In 2008, the Smith Westerns finally found a full-time drummer, Hal James, and local independent label HoZac Records (originally an offshoot of the punk ‘zine -Horizontal Action) released their first 7", a three-song single featuring the tunes "Irukandji," "Crabman," and "Spiritus Sanctus." The single promptly sold out its first two pressings, and in June 2009, HoZac brought out the Smith Westerns' self-titled debut album (initially a vinyl-only release), which found the band indulging a taste for '70s glam rock along with their punk and garage influences. The band was also touring steadily by this time, including a road trip with Nobunny in which the Smith Westerns opened the show and then reappeared as Nobunny's backing group. In 2010, the Smith Westerns released a split single on Fat Possum with the Magic Kids that featured some of their most polished music to date, and the band pledged to keep making music while several of the members also attend college." Mark Deming, Rovi

Smith Westerns on Facebook

Yuck are performing second.



"Having seemingly been blessed with the Midas touch in terms of being at the center of mass music press hype, by the end of 2010 -- and before the age of 20 -- Daniel Blumberg (guitar/vocals) and Max Bloom (guitar/vocals) found themselves in their second project that had achieved just that. The London-born, longtime friends were once melting teenage girls' hearts with the indie pop of Cajun Dance Party (in which Bloom played bass). But having received rave reviews for their XL Recordings 2008 debut album Colourful Life, the group managed to seemingly disappear, leaving behind a trail of disappointed journalists and fans. Thankfully, it wasn't to be the end for Bloom and Blumberg, who began writing music together for the first time, resulting in the late-'80s and '90s lo-fi-influenced Yuck.

The two began recording a string of demos in Bloom's bedroom before setting about finding their rhythm section. Bassist Mariko Doi, from Hiroshima, was introduced to the pair by mutual friends in London and joined after the breakup of previous band Levelload, while Blumberg met drummer Jonny Rogoff in the Israeli desert on a kibbutz. In December 2009, Rogoff "dropped everything" -- including a degree and a band called Impossible Village in his hometown of New Jersey -- to meet up with the band in London, while Daniel's younger sister Ilana provided ethereal backing vocals, although she originally remained behind the scenes to focus on her college education.

Their debut single (a split with Cleveland-based Herzog on Transparent) "Georgia" borrowed the rhythm of the Cure's "Friday I'm in Love," sped it up slightly, and added a wall of fuzz to produce what was a superb introduction to the band. Early on, Yuck showed another side to their sound with the melancholic, piano-dominated Weakend EP, which was released on cassette-only label Mirror Universe Tapes under the name Yu(c)k. Using this spelling, the band issued a split 7" on Transparent in December 2010, on which they covered Porcelain Raft's "Despite Everything"; Porcelain Raft returned the favor for "The Wall," which had earlier featured on the Weakend EP.

A million miles away from the clean-cut, boyish charm of Cajun Dance Party, the sound of Yuck resembles bands such as Sonic Youth, the Cure, Red House Painters, and the Jesus And Mary Chain. Yet while the style was so very different this time around, the kind of attention Yuck received was very familiar to Blumberg and Bloom. They toured with the likes of Teenage Fanclub, the Dum Dum Girls, and Modest Mouse, had the drone guitar-drenched single "Rubber" remixed by Mogwai, and were part of the BBC's Sound of 2011 list, all before the appearance of their self-titled debut album, which was released in February 2011 through Fat Possum, who had signed the band in September 2010." - Daniel Clancy

Yuck on Facebook

Moodrings are the opening act.



Super Nineties Crystals

Moodrings on Facebook

There will be a Black Lips DJ set in the cafe with Ol King Cole Younger and DJ Jihad as well during the show.

$8 in adv, $10 DOS 18+
Doors @ 9 pm

Advance tickets available @ Ticket Alternative, Criminal Records,
Decatur CD, Fantasyland Records and the following CD Warehouse locations: Buford, Duluth, Kennesaw, Lawrenceville and Roswell.

If you want to WIN a FREE PAIR of tickets to this show be the first person to comment stating that you want the tickets and you will receive a free pair of tickets for this show.

Photos of Lille and Qurious from Monday, January 17th, 2011

Kevin Griggs took some photos of Lille and Qurious last night.

Here are a few of those photos.

Lille:







Qurious:







Saturday, January 15, 2011

Performer Magazine presents StoneRider on Saturday, January 29th

Performer Magazine presents

StoneRider on Saturday, January 29th at the Drunken Unicorn.



"StoneRider's 'Three Legs Of Trouble' is the kind of hook-ridden Southern rock album you'd hear blasting out of shady drinking hole somewhere hot and sweaty. There isn't a single song on this thing that doesn't make you want drop your beer, jump onto the bar and lip-synch the whole way through." - Rosa Henriquez, Metal Edge Magazine

"Stonerider has a killer, rock-your-ass-off sound, and it's full of songs with giant radio-friendly choruses. This band has a bright future ahead of them." - Pete Schiecke, AOL Radio

"Somewhere Jimmy Page is wishing he was young again. StoneRider are dirty rock n' roll the way it should be." - Sari Delmar, PureGrainAudio

StoneRider on Facebook

Damon Moon & the Whispering Drifters will be performing second.



Surrounded by an ever-changing cast of band members that make up the Whispering Drifters, it becomes obvious that Damon Moon is not afraid of change. This is apparent in his songwriting as well. While still touring to promote his first full length, 'Meridian Road', much of the focus is on yet-to-be released, darker, and more psychedelic material that is heavily influenced by classic country as much as noise musicians.

Damon Moon & The Whispering Drifters on Facebook

A: The Color start the show.



A: THE COLOR is an Atlanta based, undefinable band. We played our first show in October of 2009. We will be playing shows and making albums forever, so keep a steady eye on us. ..

A: The Color on Facebook

$5 for 21+, $7 for < 21, 18+
Doors @ 9 pm

Friday, January 14, 2011

Friday, January 28th is Detroit Mutant Radio

Swine Song Entertainment presents

Detroit Mutant Radio who are headlining the Drunken Unicorn on Friday, January 28th.



Fuse fearsome dedication with six diversely talented musicians, a mind-boggling work-ethic and a positive mission, and youre facing an unstoppable force. Welcome to Detroit Mutant Radio, an Atlanta via Detroit/LA rock-rap hybrid, whose tasty tunes, stylistic diversity and frenetic live show are paying dividends with a hard-to-ignore street buzz.

Originally formed as a backing band for a Detroit rap duo featuring now-frontman Cleaven R. Creech, Detroit Mutant Radio crystallized into its current format after re-locating to Los Angeles in mid-2004. Now residing in Atlanta, they are poised to break out nationally. Although they only started gigging as Detroit Mutant Radio in late 2005, public demand soon dictated that the band rush-record their debut album, Cash N Burn, in just 28 days from conception to completion.

The result is a multi-faceted record which fuses uplifting, socially-conscious lyrics with raucous rock dynamics, all kept captivating with cultured twin-guitar interplay, bustling turntables, and a muscular, in-the-pocket rhythm section.

However eclectic Cash N Burn gets running the gamut from Faith No More groove-metal to Run DMC hip-hop - the heart of their songs remains constant: It always flows around the structure of the words and what the message is, Creech stresses. Were about awareness.Live, 'DMR' is all about energy, and Creech fully realizes his unique inner star, a born performer who simultaneously evokes Chuck D and Cat Stevens, Big Daddy Kane and Billy Joel.

With an arresting debut album on the streets and a snowballing live rep, Detroit Mutant Radio is set to reap the rewards of their skills and sacrifice. I guarantee that if you come at us with an open mind youll walk away knowing that we put 110% out there, and that its truly genuine, Creech promises.

Detroit Mutant Radio on Facebook

Dr Genius (Planet Rock) is performing second.



Dr Genius (Planet Rock) was the side-project of ex-StereoTALK!!! frontman Charlie Ahanotu. He wanted to incorporated more use of electronics and dance beats. What became a project in his room later became a full fledged band with different musician friends filling in. He later recorded a small EP entitled Planet Rock releasing it in 2010 which was more electronic and hip hop., with the additions of Andrew Allen on drums and Sarah Jackson on vocals, Planet Rock's musical directions has taken a shift towards Alternative Rock/Hip Hop and Soul..stay tuned and watch the journey

Dr Genius (Planet Rock) on Facebook

Last Aurora are the opener.



We've been playing for a long time. It's been a great ride. Tell us what you think, watch our video, give us a call! 423 762 8810.

Last Aurora on Facebook

$6, 21+
Doors @ 9 pm

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Photos of Wavves from 9 / 30 / 2010

Hey everyone,

The Drunken Unicorn TARDIS is now taking us to 09/30/2010 when Wavves performed at the Drunken Unicorn.

Thanks to Ryan James for these photos.

Wavves:







Monday, January 10, 2011

Photos of Best Coast, Cults and Carnivores from September 10th, 2010

Hey everyone,

The Drunken Unicorn TARDIS is now taking us to 09/10/2010 when Best Coast performed at the Drunken Unicorn with Cults and Carnivores

Thanks to Ryan James for these photos.

Best Coast:







Cults:



Carnivores: