the drunken unicorn

Last night was my second trip to the Drunken Unicorn, a literal hole in the wall music venue in Atlanta. It's part of the MJQ Concourse, variously described as part of the Virginia Highlands or Old Fourth Ward. You wouldn't know the Unicorn was there just by looking for it. Thankfully I ran into some guys on the way to the No Age show who could escort to the front door. From the outside, it's just a little shack in the middle of a parking lot. You descend down a broad concrete staircase to the front door.

Inside, it's quite small. The bar is a separate room to your right passed the front door. Merch is sold from a table in a room at the back of the venue. Performances seem intimate owing to the limited capacity and relatively low stage. I like this venue. The walls are adorned with a mural of flying-wing type UFOs and giant robots that remind me of the Iron Giant.

Cloud Nothings were interesting power pop. I enjoyed the set but didn't feel like I was hearing or seeing anything too remarkable. There's a lot of internet buzz about the band. Who knows, maybe Cloud Nothings are more catchy recorded than live.

Toro y Moi, on the other hand, were fantastic. This was the second time I've seen them. The first was back in Austin at Emo's as the opener for Caribou last year. Chazwick Bundick, the man behind Toro y Moi, is often linked to the contested subgenre of chillwave, consisting bands such as Neon Indian and Washed Out. He plays a highly infectious brand of electronic dance with not so faint echos of 80s electropop.

In Austin, it was a raucous dance party with just about every single body packed into the space swaying, bopping, and shaking. Atlanta was much more sedate. Only a handful of people, including yours truly, managed anything that could be considered close to dancing. Several others in the crowd managed nods but for the most part the crowd seemed rooted to the floor, unmoved by the beat. Lots of people took pictures. Sometimes it feels like the scene here is more important to be seen than to enjoy, like music is a second job and the people show up with all the enthusiasm for a cubicle maze for the sake of being at the right place on the right night.

I dunno. Something about the live music scene here in Atlanta just doesn't feel right. It's like the city has no soul, at least not for "indie" rock acts. Even notorious gurus of making your body move Ghostland Obervatory barely stirred the kids with their glo sticks to cut loose, shake their hips, and have a good time when they came through last year. Ain't no party in a sad, sad city. I hear that dancing is good for the soul. And as a benefit, it also gets you smiling.

the EARL

Tonight was my first visit to the EARL (East Atlanta Restaurant and Lounge). It's in East Atlanta, a sector of the city supposedly overrun by hipsters. There was definitely a hipster vibe to the crowd but not the over the top, cringe-worthy walking disasters made famous by websites like look at this fucking hipster or internet memes like hipster ariel. A couple of interesting folks I met said Atlanta hipsterdom is about 5 years behind the rest of the nation and I did notice a dearth of lumberjack beards on the crowd. But I'm getting off topic here...

The EARL is a great live music venue in terms of atmosphere. Even though the front half of the space is a restaurant, the place conjured more of an Emo's vibe for me than Stubb's (these are Austin music venues). The stage is in the back of the lounge. It lacks the Flintstones BDSM graffiti, punk Ganesha, and theater seats that conjure so many fond all ages shows memories of Emo's. In fact, the walls of the EARL are mostly just black. But it's got that same intimate feeling with the stage. In fact, we stood next to members of opening acts Blair and La Sera to watch Say Hi and Tennis play. I didn't see any mohawks or studded leather jackets to let me know the punks were present like the staple Emo's crowd. Atlanta seems to be light on punks, in fact; I've only noticed a few out at shows, most notably at No Age / Rene Hell show at the Drunken Unicorn.

Like I said, the atmosphere is great. The crowd was mostly chill, too, unlike my many bad experiences with people at the Tabernacle and Variety Playhouse.

The one big complaint I have about the EARL is the acoustics. Hopefully it was just an off night. One positive sign was the tech coming out to replace the lead's mic during the La Sera set to improve the volume of her vocals.

All in all, I like. Still doesn't fit quite as nicely as the aforementioned Emo's and Stubb's or the Mohawk or La Zona Rosa or the Parish, but a solid venue, assuming the sound techs get their act together and dazzle me next time. Because there will be a next time. Many of my favorite acts tour through their,  including the Lower Dens on Sunday, Telekinesis! on Monday, Asobi Seksu on the 21st, and the Pains of Being Pure at Heart with Twin Shadow on April 5.

Yew can dew it, earls!