GLOVE and other upcoming shows
From no-holds barred rock to hyperpop
Thu. Feb. 3
Thelma & The Sleaze, Bat Fangs, The EARL — These are the girls your mom warned you about. These are the girls that beat your mom’s ass on the playground in 1975. Thelma & The Sleaze is what Ke$ha was going for when she wrote, “brush my teeth with a bottle of Jack.” This Nashville three-piece sounds like they were plucked straight from a mid-70s biker bar where they were beating up Hell’s Angels and stealing their girlfriends. This is no-holds barred rock n’ roll at its grimiest. Heavy guitar. Growling vocals. In-your-face lyrics. Attitude. All you need to know about Thelma & The Sleaze is that they have albums titled Fuck, Marry, Kill, These Boots Won’t Lick Themselves, and ‘’Scared as Hell. Hide your kids. Hide your wives.
$13. 8:00p.m., The Earl, 488 Flat Shoals Ave. S.E. badearl.com @badearl
Fri., Feb. 4
Kibi James, Benét, Playytime, FRANK/ie CONSENT, 529 Bar — Sometimes you feel the need to support local musicians based off their geography rather than your feelings towards their art. Kibi James is not that kind of Atlanta band. They have a fully formed identity and excellent tunes to match. Azúcar, the group’s first release, is full of color, showcasing a soothing sound that shares DNA with SALES and Banes World. Joining them is Benét, another calming voice whose influence swings more funk and soul, and Playytime, the punk rock curveball to send the crowd into chaos.
$12. 9:00 p.m. 529 Bar, 529 Flat Shoals Ave. S.E. 529atlanta.com @529_EAV
Wed. Feb. 9
Zack Fox, Terminal West — The Internet shit poster turned stand-up comedian turned rapper is heading back to his native land after years of conquering the world by just being his fun ass self. You may not take Zack Fox seriously as a musician. And he probably doesn’t either. He doesn’t seem to take anything too seriously and that is his beauty. After the one-off song, “Square Up,” with Kenny Beats in 2018, Fox landed a viral moment appearing on Kenny’s YouTube series, The Cave, when the two crafted the hilarious “Jesus Is the One (I Got Depression).” If you have not heard this song before, please go and listen to it. Fox laments about crashing a car into a white-owned business, committing tax fraud, dipping his balls into thousand island dressing, and shouting out mental illness. This humor permeates throughout his debut project, shut the fuck up talking to me, but with clearer song structure and loads more effort. How will Zack Fox’s many mediums present itself in a live performance? I have no idea. And that is what makes it exciting. “R.I.P. Betty White.”
$25-30. 8:00 p.m. Terminal West, 887 W. Marietta St. N.W. terminalwestatl.com @terminalwest
Sat. Feb. 12
GLOVE, Mattiel (DJ Set) | TWINS / That Which Is Not Said, 529 Bar — GLOVE is Central Florida’s only hope. Being a lifelong resident of that unbridled hellscape, I can attest to the struggle of being an artist in Central Florida. Scenes come in waves, have strong presence for a year or two and then die off, usually due to lack of interest or one of the main proprietors moving to greener pastures. GLOVE has done the near impossible. They have managed to stay in their native Tampa—drummer/vocalist Brie Deux owns a lovely vintage boutique there—while touring with larger acts like White Reaper and The Districts, playing the large stages of Shaky Knees and Lollapalooza, and cultivating their own fanbase. And how could a band with this much personality not? Their sound fuses post-punk, synth wave, and art rock into an amalgamation that sounds both fresh and classic. Each of the band members take their turn in the spotlight, trading vocal duties from song to song. Sometimes, bass player Justin Burns — from my hometown, Orlando — will croon a la Joy Division’s Ian Curtis. Other times, the aforementioned Brie Deux will step out from behind the drums and deliver a furious performance in the vain of Yeah Yeah Yeah’s Karen O. But no matter who is at the microphone, GLOVE delivers. See this band before the price of admission goes up.
$12. 9:00 p.m. 529 Bar, 529 Flat Shoals Ave. S.E. 529atlanta.com @529_EAV
Washed Out, The Eastern — I first experienced a Washed Out live show in the most ideal circumstance. It was a beautifully hot summer day at Bonnaroo music festival, and I was laying under a shady tree surrounded by the people closest to me. From a nearby stage, a psychedelic wave washed over the crowd. Whether you knew the music or not, you could not help but be transfixed by the moment. And what makes the chillwave sounds of Washed Out special, is that no matter the setting, his music transports you to a similar place of peace. The everyday problems of life fall away and for a moment, you only exist in a soothing shower of bright keyboards and echoed vocals.
$27-33.8:00 p.m. The Eastern, 777 Memorial Dr. S.E. easternatl.com @easternatl
Wed., Feb. 16
Dorian Electra, The Masquerade — The kids sure have been talking a lot about hyperpop lately, haven’t they? If you are not permanently online like myself or the legion of zoomers barking about this stuff, than you may not even be familiar with this new genre or one of its most prominent torch-bearers, Dorian Electra. Allow me to explain. Hyperpop is pop music, oftentimes played at high rpms, that is blindingly bright, showered in vocal effects, and exists in a semi-cringe, online ecosystem. See: Dorian Electra. Songs like “M’Lady” and “Edgelord” poke fun at the shitty man-children of Reddit through computerized singing, while pounding you over the head with industrial beats. Elsewhere, “Career Boy” and “Man to Man” callback to shimmery 80s synth pop, but with modern takes on gender and masculinity. Dorian themselves identify as genderfluid and, through their music, create a space where internet folk, queer and not, can embrace themselves cringe and all.
’’$23. 7:00 p.m. Hell at The Masquerade, 50 Lower Alabama St.
Sat. Feb. 19
Taylor Swift Night, The Masquerade — Do you get sad when Pumpkin Spice isn’t available at Starbucks? Do you pronounce the retail store “Tar-jay?” Are you staunch listener of the “(Taylor’s Version)” of songs from 10 years ago? Do you think Karen is a slur? Then do I have the event for you! Swifties, rejoice! Put on your best cardigan and black leggings, and celebrate alongside real music listeners as a DJ plays your favorite T-Swizzle hits and B-sides. Scared that people will make fun of you for not knowing how to dance? Don’t worry! Here, no one does.
$15. 9:00 p.m. Heaven at The Masquerade, 50 Lower Alabama St. masqueradeatlanta.com The Masquerade
Wed. Mar. 2
Deafheaven, The Masquerade — Deafheaven will be the loudest concert you have ever been to. They only circumstance where I can recommend you not wear hearing protection to this show is if you have a major earwax clog causing you hearing loss that you want the bands wall of noise to chip a way at. Having experienced the San Francisco black metal band myself, I can say that in no way was their pounding sound made worse by two pieces of foam in my ears. It has been sometime since their breakout with 2013’s Sunbather—and on the band’s latest release they dramatically diminished the screaming vocals—but there is no doubt in my mind that Deafheaven have only gotten louder in a live setting.
$25. 7:00 p.m. Heaven at The Masquerade, 50 Lower Alabama St. masqueradeatlanta.com The Masquerade
—CL—