WonderRoot’s
Battle of the Bands
Gives Musicians a Chance to Give Back to the Community
WonderRoot is an Atlanta nonprofit that works to unite artists and the local community to bring about social change. And though the organization has hosted a number of shows in its two-year life span, the small organization has just trumped itself with their most proactive musical event to date.
In February 2009, WonderRoot will host its first-ever Battle of the Bands. Now, before your start greasing up the bass and dusting off the sequined headband, understand that this isn’t you’re average cockfight.
WonderRoot’s Battle of the Bands is a community service contest between unsigned local Atlanta music groups. Each band will have from December 1 to January 31 to accrue as many volunteer hours as possible at Atlanta nonprofits. Some participating organizations include Metro Atlanta Task Force for the homeless, Atlanta Community Food Bank, SOPO Bikes and Hands On Atlanta.
“We came up with this idea because it is inline with WonderRoot’s goal, which is to unite community and artists to inspire social change,” says WonderRoot’s Alex Auxier. “We could have just had a regular ol’ battle of the bands, but we wanted our version to be about bands giving back. Talent and fan base will be a factor, but they are secondary to making a difference through volunteering.”
During the two-month time period each band will have a chance to blog about their experiences on www.WonderRoot.org. This will allow fans to stay updated on favorite Atlanta groups – and maybe even schedule time to volunteer with them at their selected neighborhood organization.
In February 2009, after the two-month time period, WonderRoot will host an event featuring the top five finalists who have worked the most community service hours.
“The final event will be a showcase of the top five bands,” says Auxier. “Also, for every fan the bands bring in the door, we’ll add one hour to their grand total. We’d like to have fans bring canned food as opposed to paying a ticket price.”
After each band plays, the ultimate winner of Battle of the Bands will be selected. The winning group will be awarded time in WonderRoot’s studio to record a five-track EP with Graham Marsh of Gnarls Barkley and Leona Lewis fame.
Also, all other engineering costs will be covered by the nonprofit.
Whether you’re a big name band, or a small group that has only played an afternoon BBQ for your mom’s PTA friends, this is a great opportunity to gain exposure in a town that loves local talent.
“I want all unsigned local bands to take part in this experience,” Auxier said. “There’s no better way to gain fans than to show them how much you care about your community. Plus, you could play a thousand Wednesday night shows at Masquerade and still have zero exposure. The only way to gain influence in Atlanta’s music scene is to be involved with all aspects of it, and that includes community service.”
Bands interested in participating can register online at www.WonderRoot.org beginning Monday, November 3. Registration closes November 30.
-Beth Malone
Favorite Gentlemen Recordings
Build a Musical Community in Atlanta
Atlanta label Favorite Gentlemen Recordings has a higher purpose than just selling records. It’s also trying to build a community of artists, producers and other people in the music business.
The members of Atlanta-based band Manchester Orchestra started Favorite Gentlemen Recordings in 2006. After releasing an EP under the name, it became clear to Jeremiah Edmond, drummer for Manchester Orchestra and co-head of Favorite Gentlemen Recordings, that the label could help a lot of musicians.
“We had a bunch of friends all in bands trying to make it at the same time we were,” Edmond recalls. “We realized if we pooled our resources under the Favorite Gentlemen name, we could use the name recognition to help each other out.”
Since its humble beginning, the label has grown to 13 artists and is distributed by Sony/Red Distribution. However, promoting the music community aspect has remained the focus.
“Over time, all the different artists seem to work with the same group of producers,” Edmond explains. “Everything has become entwined, so the label is a great way to promote all the different companies, everyone is working together for the betterment of the community as a whole.”
One producer that Favorite Gentlemen Recordings has tied to the community is Matt Malpass, a long-time friend of Edmond since middle school and owner of Marigolds and Monsters Studio in Atlanta. In the past, Malpass has worked with Chad Pearson, who runs the label P is for Panda, making him a valuable resource to musicians in the community. Recently, Malpass produced Charleston band All Get Out’s new EP, set to be released November 25 on Favorite Gentlemen Recordings.
According to Edmond, if you’re an indie artist looking to break out, Favorite Gentlemen Recordings is the perfect home for you.
“For a younger artist trying to get going that doesn’t have management or a label, it’s just a home with people to help with what they can without the commitment of being tied to a recording agreement with somebody who can’t really do anything for you,” Edmond says. “Everything we do is based on trying to help our friends and getting them to help other people.”
For Edmond, helping an artist could be anything from arranging distribution to taking them on tour with Manchester Orchestra.
“We’ve been blessed, so it’s great to help a younger artist out by giving them exposure on the road with us,” Edmond says. “We’ll also try to hook them up with somebody that can book a tour for them. Really, we do whatever we can for them without having them pay a bunch of money to us or be tied down to any long-term contract.”
Recently, there has been a lot going on at Favorite Gentlemen Recordings. Right Away, Great Captain! has finished recording his second full-length album, due out November 11. Also, look for an EP from O’Brother, which is currently in the studio being recorded, and a full-length album from Beggars’ Guild sometime soon.
P is for Panda and Favorite Gentlemen will be co-hosting an event on November 13 at Vinyl, featuring Damion Suomi (P is for Panda), The Record Kid (unsigned), All Get Out (Favorite Gentlemen) and Manchester Orchestra frontman Andy Hull’s side project Right Away, Great Captain! (Favorite Gentlemen).
-Chris Homer
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In the News
Singer/songwriter Shawn Mullins released a new live DVD, Live at the Variety Playhouse, in October. The DVD features two sets, one acoustic and the other with Mullins’ full band. Live at the Variety Playhouse includes some of Mullins’ biggest hits like “Lullaby,” “Beautiful Wreck,” “Shimmer” and “All in My Head.”
www.myspace.com
/shawnmullins
Feeding Fingers announced their new album, Baby Teeth, will be released January 27, 2009. The album is a split-label release on band member Justin Curfman’s label Tephramedia and Stickfigure Records. Feeding Fingers is accepting pre-orders at www.justincurfman.com until the album’s release date to help cover production costs. The band will launch a U.S. tour in 2009, with the first show being January 31 at The Drunken Unicorn.
www.myspace.com/
thefeedingfingers
Gringo Star’s anticipated debut album, All Ya’ll, will be released on November 4 by My Anxious Mouth Records. Ben H. Allen, who has worked with Gnarls Barkley, The Hives and Animal Collective, produced the album. Gringo Star plans to follow the release of the album with a fall tour.
www.myspace.com
/thegringostars
Atlanta band The Paper Champions have decided to spilt ways. However, half the members of the band have gone on to form Lakehurst Is Burning, a band that’s very similar sounding to The Paper Champions. The new band has two new demo tracks on their MySpace page.
www.myspace.com
/lakehurstisburning
Atlanta based Doppler Studios had a busy summer and early fall. Chamillionaire was at the studio this summer recording vocals for his third album, coming out later this year. Up and coming R&B artist, London also recorded vocals at the studio this summer for his upcoming album produced by Prince. Other artists found recording at Doppler over the summer include Ludacris, Hotstylz, two-time Grammy winner Jennifer Holliday and Nina Sky.
www.dopplerstud
ios.com
Several bands played for a good cause at The Drunken Unicorn on September 6. The show was a benefit show for Christopher Stahle, the former general manager of Carroll Street Café in Cabbagetown, who was shot and mugged in April. The show raised money to help Stahle pay his medical bills. Cadillac Jones, Van Henieken, The Khans and Rizzudo played the show.
www.thedrunkenun
icorn.net
The Old Fourth Ward in Atlanta got a new venue/coffee shop at the end of August. Located on the corner of Boulevard and Edgewood Avenue, Danneman’s Coffee Shop boasts a 1,100 square-foot second floor that is perfect for an alternative venue.
www.dannemans.com
Danielle Sansone, a singer-song writer who originally made a name for herself in the Atlanta music scene in the mid-90s, has returned to performing after a hiatus to start a family. Since returning, Sansone has shifted her focus to making music for kids, and her first children’s album Two Flowers was released in October. Sansone played a CD release show at Eddie’s Attic October 18.
www.daniellesansone.com
Atlanta’s Patchwerk Studios also had a busy summer. Engineer Mike Wilson worked with Ludacris recording vocal tracks for his song “Nasty Girl.” Wilson also worked with R&B singer Tiffany Evans on her upcoming sophomore album. Also at Patchwerk, Leslie Braithwaite mixed tracks for the upcoming Young Jeezy album.
www.patchwerk.com
Dear Enemy released their first full-length album in September, produced by Corey Lowery of Dark New Day. The album has 12 tracks, including one track, “This Is My Goodbye,” that features Clint Lowery from Sevendust on guitar. Dear Enemy has had success in the past; in 2006, the band was voted best local music act by Creative Loafing. The band was on tour in support of the album through September.
www.myspace.com/
dearenemy
Rock, golf and motorcycles don’t usually go hand-in-hand, unless it’s the Two Wheel Driver philanthropy road show. The event came through Atlanta October 22 and 23, and included a golf tournament at Wolf Creek Golf Course on the 22nd followed by a benefit concert at Smith’s Olde Bar on the 23rd. The event raised money for cancer research.
www.twowheeldriver.com
The Syrens of the South began their weekly burlesque classes, “The ABC’s and 123’s of Burlesque,” at the Relapse Theater in September. Classes meet every Sunday from 1-3 p.m. The classes are $30 each, or four classes for $100.
www.myspace.com
/syrensofthesouth
With presidential elections quickly approaching, Rock The Vote sponsored a show October 18 at Vinyl. Rock The Vote is a non-partisan organization that encourages young voters to, well, actually vote. One Atom 12, Fervor, SidAerial, and Tx/Rx played the show.
www.rockthevote.com
The Swear released the much-anticipated full-length follow-up to its debut EP August 26. Hotel Rooms and Heart Attacks features 13 songs produced by Ted Niceley, Matt Goldman and Jeff Tomei. The Swear appeared on an L.A. Talk Radio program and on Athens’ WUOG/90.5 FM in August to support the record. The band was also the featured band for the week of September 8 to12 on Atlanta’s Project 961’s “Project Homegrown.” On September 12, the band played a CD release show in Atlanta at 10 High.
www.theswear.com |
