DOGSMILES + TIDEZZ + THOR SPEELER
SUN AUG 9 | 7 PM | COASTAL EMPIRE BEER CO.
Dogsmiles, the self-described queer anarcho weirdos from Jacksonville, perform a dance-punk style that draws from at least four distinct influences. There’s the bombastic fullness and glam of Denver’s Foreskin 500, the relentless synthetic percussion of Big Black, the bass-led noise of Lightning Bolt, and the industrial dance music of KMFDM. The combination works in a frantic, stop-start sound that allows one to shake that booty and bounce around a mosh pit in equal parts.
Savannah’s Tidezz have been experimenting with punk rock since 2021. The earlier material is moody, atmospheric, and free of vocals. The self-titled 2024 album alternates between dreamy, Cure-like post-punk and a more traditional hardcore sound filled out by fuzzy electric guitars.
The latest release, Living in Somebody Else’s Paradise, is hard to call experimental at all. It’s just straightforward punk rock with big, grinding guitars, fast tempos, and just a bit of electronics. There are five songs in 12 minutes, so they get to the point, emphasize it, and clam up.
Fellow Savannahian Thor Speeler isn’t as intense as the others, sharing the synth-dance elements of Dogsmiles with none of the hardcore fury of Tidezz. His previous band was in a similar vein, but the sober version of Mr. Speeler isn’t angry; his sound is very much a celebration of being alive and aware.
TRAVOLTA
SAT AUG 8 | 7 PM | COACH’S CORNER
Disco took a lot of crap from rock fans and other music snobs when it was all the rage in the ‘70s. Like almost every pop-culture phenomenon, it attracted soulless attempts to cash in, creating an oversaturation that provoked resistance to the whole genre.
That’s too bad, because the best of the genre featured interesting musicianship and considerable talent. Syncopated bass lines, pioneering synthesizers, lush orchestration, and a driving four-on-the-floor rhythm accented by a loud hi-hat were just some of the musical characteristics that set it apart from danceable rock.
Its popularity led some of rock’s biggest names to release unabashedly disco songs, including Miss You by the Rolling Stones, I Was Made for Lovin’ You by KISS, and Heart of Glass by Blondie. Even the Grateful Dead got into it with Shakedown Street. Across the pond, Brits from Rod Stewart to The Kinks gave it a shot.
Culturally, it may have been a bit too Black, Latin, gay, and drug-fueled for the time, but by some estimates, there were as many as 20,000 disco clubs across the country by 1979. Oversaturation and exhaustion caused a collapse, but its legacy endures in multiple forms of EDM, the dance pop of Madonna and Prince, rap and modern R&B, and more. Rock bands also figured out songs could lean even harder on rhythm rather than always relying on a guitar riff.
With so much history behind it and about 130 songs that made the Billboard Top 20 from 1975–80, and perhaps as many as 45 No. 1 singles, Atlanta’s disco cover band Travolta has a lot to work with.
They call it a “Tribute to Studio 54” but it goes even deeper. Classics by KC & The Sunshine Band, Chic, and The Commodores are matched with latter-day hits by Cameo, Prince, and Michael Jackson. Wear comfy shoes, dance your head off, and remember: no blow after 40.
THE PINK STONES + CODY BOLDEN AND THE ROADHANDS
THU AUG 6 & FRI AUG 7 | ALL DAY | OVER YONDER
The term “psychedelic” was coined in 1957, a portmanteau of the Greek words psyche and deloun. Literally, it means “soul-revealing.” Given how strict and confined mainstream country music remained through the late ’60s, it took early cosmic cowboys such as Gram Parsons to inject the genre with counterculture.
He died just as the movement was taking hold in Austin, but the acceptance of what he did revealed that part of the country crowd was ready to shed conformity and bug out. The Pink Stones leaned heavily into this genre-bending on their first two LPs, with rock, soul, funk, humor, and heartbreak.
Parsons’ shadow on their music faded a bit by their third record. Released last year, Thank the Lord… It’s The Pink Stones found the Athens quintet exploring the Deep South twang of the Louvin Brothers that preceded the psychedelia and the mid-‘70s country rock that ran adjacent to it.
Cody Bolden’s story is more linear. The Atlanta musician keeps it more traditional, with classic storytelling, honky-tonk swagger, and working-class tales. He grew up on outlaw country, Southern rock, and bluegrass. Influences cited include Waylon Jennings, Hank Sr., and Lynyrd Skynyrd. It may not be groundbreaking, but if too much country music were, it wouldn’t be the dependable style audiences want. Get a healthy dose of both for two days, all day, at the best country bar in town.
SLINGBLADE + FACE OFF + TAKEN FOR GRANTED + UPHOLD
FRI AUG 7 | 6 PM | COASTAL EMPIRE BEER CO.
Willie’s Wee-nee Wagon and capsized ships full of mangled Hyundais aren’t the only things that make Brunswick interesting. Savannah’s southern neighbor has a burgeoning metal scene, and the city’s local promoter Coastal Chaos put together a four-band banger of head-stomping Southeast hardcore.
Savannah’s own Slingblade tops the bill, with its well-known bespoke blend of sludge metal, hardcore, and groove. Their recent EP Buried in Clay captures the sound, but nothing beats the beatdown of the live pummeling.
A trio of out-of-towners seek to make an impression on the Hostess City the way a piano makes an impression on top of a cartoon character’s head as it falls from a 14th-story window.
NOLA’s Face Off are pure hardcore fury, quite reminiscent of late ‘80s NYHC bands Cro-Mags, Agnostic Front, Breakdown, and Biohazard. There’s a slight metal edge to it, as heavy hardcore should, and the snare properly sounds like a door slamming in your face.
Taken For Granted formed in Panama City, Florida, 20 years ago. A hardcore punk act in the youth-crew vein, they deliver strong riffs, galloping rhythms, angry vocals, and mosh parts where they belong.
Newest of the bunch is Jacksonville’s Uphold. The two-guitar attack inevitably means there’s a tad more thrash metal influence, but it’s still unmistakably hardcore punk. The endurance of the style, four decades after it blew up, is at least one reason to hope the meteor doesn’t hit us any time soon.
CHEEZE
FRI AUG 7 | 9 PM | THE WORMHOLE
The local rock trio seems to have two identities. Several singles available on the major platforms (SoundCloud, Apple Music, Spotify) are vocal-forward, with organ loops, acoustic strumming, and a haunting quality to them. Not what you’d expect from a power trio.
On the other hand, the live sound is more in line with how they describe themselves. That is, rock accented by metal, blues, and alternative. Video evidence says the live shows are all about that bass, drums, guitar, and vocals. The metal comes through in the guitar’s distortion, but it’s a classic metal tone rather than the cut-and-slash attack of modern metalcore.
Bluesier songs boast soaring leads, and the combo of these influences with the unusual recorded material is more than enough to slap an alternative moniker on it. Fronted by a married couple with a child, they’ve presumably found trustworthy babysitters and have been playing more live shows recently. See the proud parents do their version of freedom rock.
By Frank Ricci