After Dark

Thank gawd for gentrification. Without it, we’d be denied some of our guiltiest pleasures.

Have you noticed that Atlanta’s newest nightlife district sits smack dab in the middle of Old Fourth Ward, one of the few remaining neighborhoods where you’ll find scenesters mingling with soulsters - and where crack is still considered a designer drug? Fancy that.

Truth is, there’s a revived exploration happening all throughout our late-night nooks and musical crannies. Take Antwan “Big Boi” Patton. Relegated to the sidelines by the industry, Big found a way to remind us that there’s still something inherently cool about being an outcast. The same goes for Zoroaster, a band with the mettle to reshape this town’s music scene.

It took an old-school karaoke party to bring life back to Pal’s historic corner of Auburn Avenue. Meanwhile, throwback bands like Yacht Rock Revue and the Soulphonics and Ruby Velle have injected new blood into their epic redux.

From strip clubs to 7-inches, Atlanta’s finding some inventive ways to reanimate the tried and true.

— Rodney Carmichael

Spin City: Best reason to blow up the soundsystem BOA Award Winner

Year » 2010
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2010 » After Dark » Critics Pick

Predator’s ‘Honest Man’ (Rob’s House)

Predator’s debut single, “HONEST MAN” (Rob’s House), catches the band at its anxiety-ridden finest. Three cuts of razor-sharp guitar, bass and drums collide with two-part vocal chants, oozing with self-loathing and punk perfection. www.myspace.com/atlpredator

Best Band to Blow the Roof Off of the Joint BOA Award Winner

Year » 2010
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2010 » After Dark » Critics Pick

The Constellations

By law, Atlanta’s local watering holes have to close their taps at 2:30 a.m., but that doesn’t mean the party’s over. The after-hours scene is no place for the faint of heart, and THE CONSTELLATIONS’ electro-debauchery provides an insider’s look at what makes the South so dirty. The group’smore...

By law, Atlanta’s local watering holes have to close their taps at 2:30 a.m., but that doesn’t mean the party’s over. The after-hours scene is no place for the faint of heart, and THE CONSTELLATIONS’ electro-debauchery provides an insider’s look at what makes the South so dirty. The group’s 2010 album, Southern Gothic, is a sleazy, sweat-soaked rollercoaster ride into the excesses of the night, with a cast of shady characters along for the ride. Your mother might not be their biggest fan, but their lecherous ways landed them on Virgin Records and helped them score a spot opening for Snoop Dogg on stages across the country. And you know Snoop don’t party with amateurs. www.theconstellationsmusic.com less...

Best Local Rock Act BOA Award Winner

Year » 2010
Section » Print Features » Special Issue » Best of Atlanta » 2010 » After Dark » Critics Pick

Noot d’ Noot

No one gets a party started quite like NOOT D’ NOOT. If the collective experience of eight musicians who’ve spent their time in the trenches, wrapping their heads around everything from punk, funk, math rock, soul, jazz and hip-hop has taught the group anything, it’s how to make bodies move. Themore...

No one gets a party started quite like NOOT D’ NOOT. If the collective experience of eight musicians who’ve spent their time in the trenches, wrapping their heads around everything from punk, funk, math rock, soul, jazz and hip-hop has taught the group anything, it’s how to make bodies move. The line between artists and audience disappears when the polyrhythms take over. Noot d’ Noot is all about altitude, not attitude, and regardless of gender, creed or color, the group’s songs always speak in tongues. www.myspace.com/nootdnoot less...