Commentary: Shrinking Scene
By Jillian Mapes, Editorial Director I would never be so delusional as to think that everyone who cares one iota about the Athens music scene flocks to The Union or Casa Nueva as much as I do to see local rock’n’roll bands. What I have to say does not hinge on this assumption. It does, however, function under the belief that local music matters. For those who let it, local music becomes a part of our lives in a way that’s different from the other music we enjoy. It becomes de
Hip-Hop in Hickville
By Star Watson, Staff Writer When walking past Athens, Ohio’s local rock and roll bar, The Union, on a Wednesday afternoon, you wouldn’t think that twice a month they hold the biggest and most routine hip-hop shop and emcee battle in town. Driving down Court Street on any given day wouldn’t give you the slightest idea that a group of emcees, along with local drunkards, form a cipher outside of Pawpurr’s Bar & Grille every first Friday of the month around one in the morning. B
Opera and Embers
By Jen Kessler, Managing Editor A lovingly restored theatre that reflects its glory days from 1879 through 1924 when it was home to touring vaudeville, melodrama and minstrel shows, Stuart's Opera House is the cornerstone of the Nelsonville Historic Arts District. Get There! From Athens: 33 West toward Nelsonville/Columbus You’ll navigate this snaking stretch for ten miles. The glaring greenery of ancient trees will hold your attention, should it be spring or summer time. The
Like family: PALA shows there is relation in no relation
By Rika Nurrahmah, ACRN Traffic Director Through composition, the members of PALA prove that good music doesn’t need to be constructed and categorized like a nuclear family. They won’t settle for 12 tracks of d-beat so you can pigeon-hole them into the crust-punk genre, nor will they magnetize themselves to chugging breakdowns to ignite an obligatory rain dance among crowd members at some hardcore show. The latter is reserved for bassist Chris Kuhn’s other band, Baltimore’s h
Not your grandmother's music zine
By Jillian Mapes, Editorial Director A stack of Aquabear Readers sits in a tall, metal magazine holder in an out-of-the-way nook at Athens’ own Donkey Coffee. A latte-toting young man squats down to pick one up. Examining the front cover, which depicts a polar bear wearing a party hat against an outline of the state of Ohio, the man turns to his friend and says, “This is like, free, dude. I didn’t know people still made these things.” “These things,” as the passerby so eloque
