[Videos] White Light Forest Choir, Jungol, Nerd Parade @ Nophest 2010

Nophest
July 24th, 2010
Eyedrum


White Light Forest Choir:


Jungol:


Nerd Parade:

[Mp3] R_Garcia: “Unicorn On The Cob”

From fronting Nerd Parade to masterminding this week’s DIY music festival Nophest, multi-instrumentalist Randy Garcia is a musical force in Atlanta. His latest solo offering kind of slipped through the cracks when it got released around the holidays and I didn’t get a chance to discuss it, but it’s one of the best local records to emerge this year. The aptly named Everything Ever spans an impressively diverse range of sound for a primarily electronic album. Containing deep pop sensibilities, it’s also surprisingly catchy and attention grabbing for an instrumental piece. He’ll be performing as R_Garcia Thursday night at the opening Nophest round at Eyedrum, and here’s a fun, slightly Dan Deacon-esque jammer that even includes a really sweet guitar solo in the middle:

R_Garcia: “Unicorn On The Cob”

Buy Everything Ever

R_Garcia website

An Atlanta Mp3 Trilogy: Fishhawk, Reklein/R_Garcia, Wizard Smoke

fishhawk

I just got a copy of Fishhawk‘s Bells Underwater, which got released early in the summer. Their sound is somewhere vaguely in TV On The Radio territory, and while stylistically it is a little too far outside of my normal taste range, I have to admit that it is very well done. The production quality alone makes this a worthwhile release to check out. At 15 tracks, the record has a little too much fat on it, but it also has some really great moments.

Fishhawk : Panic Attack

Buy Bells Underwater

Fishhawk myspace




reklein

Reklein are a local electronic group that do nice laid back Intelligent Dance Music. They have recently released their newest album, Piedmont, and it has been growing on me more and more with each listen. Typically I find myself a little bored with something this chill and atmospheric, but there are so many interesting, little quirky things going on throughout this record. Nerd Parade‘s Randy Garcia just did a cool remix of one of the tracks, so check it out and then go grab a copy of Piedmont for free:

Reklein : Cassidy (R_Garcia 1337 IDMZ Mix)

Download Piedmont for free

Reklein myspace

R_Garcia website





Wizard Smoke @ Corndogorama 2009

Wizard Smoke are a metal super-group associated with local bands such as Maserati, Attractive 80′s Women, Dust Rabbit and Cassavetes. They do droney, doomy stoner metal that sounds exactly what you would expect from that description. So it isn’t exactly breaking new ground, and I have great difficulty enjoying the monotone screamy vocals, but beyond that this band rocks out pretty hard. So if you enjoy this sort of thing, you can go download their debut album for free:

Wizard Smoke : III

Download Live Rock In Hell for free

Wizard Smoke myspace

Photos: Fishhawk, Nerd Parade, Tree Creature, Nomen Novum, This Piano Plays Itself, Larvae, Jungol, Onset @ Nophest 2009

Photos 1 – 11, 17, 18, 20, and 24 by Clint Miller
Photos 12 – 16, 19, 21 – 23, 25 – 35 by Kevin Griggs

Onset:

Jungol:

Larvae:


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What The Hell Am I Listening To?!?

Atlanta bands playing Nophest:

Jungol

If you aren’t familiar with Jungol, you might be familiar with Liquid Jungle, the band’s former incarnation. Centered around brothers Josh and Graham Yoder, this group has actually been soldiering the local scene for most of the decade. I caught them a few times back in the day when jambands ruled a hefty portion of the underground music turf, and while they were certainly part of that scene, I remember there being a little something different about these guys. They had something special that the typical neo-hippie brahs didn’t have. Fast forward to now, and Jungol have evolved into an excellent band that writes beautiful, concise pop songs infused with a heart of prog, as showcased on their newest record, Places. I think my favourite thing about this album is how so much intricacy and subtly is veiled behind the pleasantly appealing melodies in the forefront. Make sure to pick up a copy, because it still hasn’t stopped growing on me:

Jungol : Places

Jungol : Junkyard

Buy Places

Jungol Myspace




Nerd Parade

As the name of their band would imply, Nerd Parade aren’t concerned with their style being hip, they’re just busy making good music. Usually it is hard for me to dig into conservative leaning music like this, employing pop music and rock ‘n’ roll from every corner of the late 20th century, but this band just puts it all together masterfully. Their newest record, The Span Of A Life, is ridiculously dynamic, bouncing around between so many different influences and styles while Abby Wren and Randy Garcia trade vocal duties when they aren’t both differing to extended instrumental jam outs. What is also striking about the album, is how seamlessly it all flows together. It is all one colossal composition, and it’s been an integral part of my summer soundtrack. Check it out:

Nerd Parade : Dead Air & Denial

Nerd Parade : One Million Wooden Arches

Buy The Span Of A Life

Nerd Parade myspace