Save Criminal Records benefit at Star Bar tonight. Donations at the door. Proceeds to Criminal Records. Kudos to 4th Ward Heroes for organizing the event.

It’s not official but we like the idea of today being Little Record Store Day. It’s the only shopping we’re really going to consider. You might want to consider it too.

We know that Decatur CD, Criminal Records and to a lesser extent Wax n Facts and Wuxtry will be open and participating in special sales today. We also know that Tall Stax in Sandy Springs is having a buy four get one free sale all weekend.

Here’s a list of just some of the special and limited releases that will be available only through independent record stores.

Cee Lo (12″ single), Grinderman (12″ single), U2 (live 12″), George Harrison (3LP All Things), Tom Petty (7″), Bob Dylan (7″), Bruce Springsteen (7″), Rocky Erickson (DVD), Sharon Jones (7″ box set), Soundgarden (7″), Dr. Dog (7″), Killing Joke (2CD deluxe), Black Crowes (live 10″), Drive-By Truckers (10″), Black Keys (2LP), Iron & Wine (12″/CD single), Gaslight Anthem (7″), Frank Sinatra (Christmas LP), KT Tunstall (CD EP), MGMT (7″), Cage the Elephant (7″), The Doors (180 gram 12″), Pantera (LP reissue), The Sword (12″ picture disc), Monster Magnet (CD).

By Erik Stefan

If a band plays live in a theatre, and no one was there to hear them…

I’ve been told that summertime is not the optimal time to visit Venice. The canals double as open sewers and the stench is said to be pungent. That said, I’ve never actually been to Venice, summertime or otherwise. So, I have to base my knowledge of the city on conjecture and text books, neither of which can do the city justice.

So, why is it that I listen to Sand & Lines and genuinely want more from this band? It’s highly likely that I’ve romanticized that Record Store Day performance and set unattainable expectations. After all, they did give me this CD.

Sand & Lines leaves me with the same ache I get when I eat a Lean Cuisine; I want more. It’s an ambitious effort in both sound and structure, and the record deserves a brief back story. The album was recorded over a five-day period in the now fire-ravaged Georgia Theatre that masterfully dressed the songs in dark hues of reverb, an apt color considering the album’s content. More impressively, the songs were recorded live to tape via only two microphones with no post-production. In our modern Pro Tools age, this approach is rarely undertaken. Once upon a time, it was the only way. Today, it’s a novelty.

The songs, for the most part, are stellar when taken alone. There’s a good mix of covers (highlighted by Galaxie 500‘s “Tugboat Captain” and Waylon Jenning‘s “The Wurlitzer Prize”) and originals (must listen: “Falls City”). The only song that I could’ve done without is the well-worn “Jolene” by Dolly Parton. It’s been done before, and I’m not sure Venice is Sinking added to its legacy. Otherwise, Venice is Sinking makes the handful of covers their own, engulfing the country-twinged tunes with layers of slightly gritted guitars and moaning organs. Violins and horns jut in and out of the mix, adding ornamentation to already well-decorated songs.

Unfortunately, when played from front to back, the record seems to sag a bit. There isn’t much pep, and the dusky reverb has a hibernation-inducing quality. Layering the songs with echo, the live recording approach has made the album less “punchy” than a traditional studio effort, and, as a result, less attention grabbing. Which brings me to…

The fact that this record is live without an audience. The magic shared between Venice is Sinking and the crowd at Criminal Records is missing on Sand & Lines. Instead, the band is left alone to conjure up the energy and anticipation that the fans typically supply. In concert, songs tend to be played faster with more momentum. While the songs on this record are splendid, that drive is missing.

Now, getting back to Venice, you can either visit the city or guess what it’s really like based on the opinions of others. I would recommend the former, as I would also do for Venice Is Sinking. Sand & LInes is representative of their sound, but you would be better served hearing these songs live. Check them out.

Rating: AAAa (that’s 3.5 As)

Listen: Venice is Sinking – Falls City

Listen: Venice is Sinking – Tugboat

We love comics!  Get yours for free today.

Check out the big event at Criminal Records with artists and authors signing books, and live music from An Horse and Local Natives or head out to Oxford Comics, Book Nook, or anywhere else where you might get your comic fix.

Saturday is Record Store Day. We’ve been saving our nickels for this weekend. We hope you have been too.

The good folks at Criminal Records have put together quite a line-up of live performances with Janelle Monae, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Those Darlins and a special evening appearance by Rodriguez. Of course, they will have many of the special limited edition releases produced especially for Record Store Day. Our pals at Decatur CD will also have all of those special release items.

Record Store Day isn’t just about big parties and special releases though. It’s about all the independently owned and operated record shops in Atlanta and everywhere. Take a minute on Saturday or sometime soon to check out one of Atlanta’s other music shops like Moods Music, Andy’s Tall Stax (CD Warehouse Sandy Springs), Reactionary Records, Wax n’ Facts, Circle Sky Records, Feed Your Head! Music, Wuxtry Records, Full Moon Records in Candler Park, Fantasyland Records in Buckhead, The Book Nook in Toco Hills & Marietta, or The CD Warehouse shops in Duluth and Roswell.

If we missed somebody that you think deserves a mention please drop a comment below. We hope we run into you in the record aisle somewhere on Saturday.

Finally, here’s a couple of tunes from Widespread Panic that they pre-released from their upcoming record, Dirty Side Down, just for Record Store Day.

Listen: Widespread Panic – North

Listen: Widespread Panic – Dirty Side Down

Once more with Surfer Blood.  (We just can’t get enough of that Discovery Channel album cover).

We’re giving away one pair of tickets to tomorrow night’s Surfer Blood show at the Drunken Unicorn.  The only way to get the tickets is to go to the free in-store at Criminal Records tomorrow tonight – Friday, Feb. 19 at 7pm.

It’s so much like a raffle we don’t know what else to call it.  Here’s how it works.  You get one ticket for finding Lillian or intern Emily and two extra tickets if you purchase the Astro Coast CD.   Then you hang out, listen to these four boys from Florida rock out in the back of the store, and slurp a little New Belgium beer (if you can prove you’re old enough).  At the end you find out whether you get to see the band’s full blown show that night at the DU plus shows by soldi openers Turbo Fruits, Carnivores, and Holiday Shores.  

It all starts at 7pm at Criminal Records.