Small Reactions, Eddie Gold, and Wheeler Boys win CL Throwdown

On June 21, CL asked audience members at the annual Music Issue Throwdown, held this year at the Drunken Unicorn and MJQ, to vote for their favorite performers of the night by texting in their choices. Acts receiving the most votes were promised the chance to perform at one of three massive music festivals later this year. Competition was thick, but after the votes were tallied, the winners were announced: Small Reactions will go on to play Meltasia in LaFayette, Ga., the weekend of Sept. 5-7; Eddie Gold will perform at TomorrowWorld, taling place Sept. 26-28; and the Wheeler Boys will move on to play this year’s A3C Hip Hop Festival, Oct. 8-12.

The Star Bar Community Bar reopened the Little Vinyl Lounge (LVL) on June 18 as a refurbished cocktail lounge. Co-owners Kahle Davis and Susan Pavlin transformed the downstairs bar into an utterly unrecognizable space from what used to be as a retro hot spot for DJs since the ’90s. With a few coats of paint, ’50s-style diner tables, and heavy Hitchcockian and Lynchian vibes, the once claustrophobic, gloomy space, with the about-to-crash-down-and-kill-me ceiling, is now a distant memory. The padded vinyl bar has been stripped down and replaced, but Davis and Pavlin plan to pay homage to the past by hosting DJs in the intimate setting. The bar will still serve $2 tallboys and offer a $6 industry Old Fashioned from 3 p.m.-3 a.m. every Wednesday and Thursday, and will have a separate entrance from the upstairs venue. LVL’s cocktail menu will be in seasonal rotation, along with craft beer selections and a late-night menu that’s still in the works. Although the bones are complete, Davis and Pavlin are seeking input and recommendations from regular customers as they conceptualize the decorative details.

Nappy Roots’ MCs Skinny Deville and Fish Scales have made a last-minute decision on their SMKA-collaborative album, 3 Days. Rather than put together an album pairing just those two MCs, the album will feature the whole group and will be dubbed The 40 Akerz Project. In addition to their previously released video for “Tokyo,” the fellas recruited Jarren Benton for their latest offering, “No Idea.”

Made up of former Morehouse College students Earvin and Kose, hip-hop/R&B duo the Redland recently released the visuals for its track “Survive.” Instead of romantic scenes and lovey-dovey cinematography, the video features the two musicians battling zombies to save a lover. It’s just like an episode of “The Walking Dead,” so don’t get too attached to any of the characters.

In new releases news, local metal authority Boris Records has two new burnt offerings out this month. First up is a new 7-inch from Atlanta’s harbingers of black metal mania Hellgoat. The record features two deep, dark satanic shred fests, “Demonic Worship of the Horned Beast” b/w “End of Man.” The A-side intro is a bit of an evil speed bump before the onslaught of high-speed guitar and demonic shrieking is unleashed. It boasts one of the most soul-gripping bestial roars this city has ever produced. It’s also one of the group’s first releases where poor sound quality isn’t really an issue.

Boris’ second offering this month comes from Lima, Peru’s Morbid Slaughter. In true South American fashion, “Wicca” b/w “Nightly Breath of God” comes bearing a hybrid of blackened thrash metal steeped in dark and foreboding imagery that delves into witchcraft, horror, and death.

Faun and a Pan Flute’s self-titled LP and Magicicada’s Wrack with Ruin LP were released June 19 via Mission Trips. Faun and a Pan Flute’s album isn’t the group’s debut, but it should be thought of as such, as it is the first recording that actually captures the many facets of the group’s sound in all of its strange and evocative beauty. Both albums arrived in time for a label showcase at Elliott St. Deli & Pub the night before both acts hit the road for a two-week tour.

Jungol’s latest self-released album, Ghost Knocks, arrived with a release party at the Earl on June 21.

Blood Drunk Records is releasing a new digital compilation on Mon., June 30, titled Give It a Home: Vol. 2. The comp features 20 tracks by bands from Atlanta such as Jungol, Baby Baby, DIP, Nobra Noma, and more, along with groups from Wilmington, N.C., and St. Petersburg, Fla. Physical copies will be available at the release party on Sat., June 28. The party dubbed “Bummer Summer ‘14” will be a combination community yard sale/house show at 1490 Metropolitan Ave. Ganges Phalanges, Wicked Pretty, Seagulls, Swank Sinatra, and the Joy Kills are performing. The party starts at noon. Music starts at 5 p.m. Drop a line to bummersummeratl@gmail.com if you want to get in on the yard sale action.

In other BDR news, the label also recently released a new digital single, “Xaniña,” by burgeoning local psych-rock trio Doesin.

With additional reporting by Gavin Godfrey and Natalie Fressell.