all 5 comments

[–][deleted] 4 points5 points ago


I would start in Athens, GA.

[–]Splunk_09 3 points4 points ago


Living in Athens, I can say that the music scene is incredibly diverse so where to start depends a bit on your own personal tastes. Athens has been one of, if not the, most important campus music scenes in America since the 70's, so there is a lot going on. To start out, you'd want to begin with the biggest, most influential bands, with the #1 being R.E.M.

R.E.M. was one of the bands that created alternative rock in the 80's, paving the way for the AltRock explosion of the 90's, heavily influencing bands like Nirvana. Start with their first record, Murmur, and the move on to albums like Document, Green, and Automatic for the People (named after the slogan of Weaver D's, a soul food restaurant in Athens).

The B-52's are another hugely influential group, one of the early "New Wave" bands. Their eponymous debut album and Cosmic Thing are the first two you should approach.

There are a lot of other bands without quite the same national recognition that are quite important to the Athens music scene, such as Ravenstone, a politically-charged rock band that was one of the very first rock bands that helped found the scene, particularly through their support of WUOG, the UGA student radio station. The band gained notoriety for the crazed live performances and political action. The band faced off against city police as their concerts became more and more rowdy and eventually the KKK as they played at the first Gay Rights Dance in the South. The band fell apart, however, while recording their first album, although many of the members and associates remained prominent in the Athens music scene for a long time afterwards (including being involved in the opening of the 40 Watt, Athen's first dedicated rock music venue, being part of R.E.M.'s first house show, and hosting Widespread Panic's early outdoor concerts). You can still find some old Ravenstone tracks online and the band reunited in the early 2000's and finally released an album, to mixed reviews.

Also highly important were Pylon and Love Tractor. Pylon was another early Alternative rock band, but were also far more part of the New Wave movement than R.E.M. Its members started the 40 Watt Club, which jump-started the Athens music scene. Pylon was closely-connected with R.E.M. and the bands toured together. Pylon only released 2 albums during their initial run, Chump and Gyrate, so they're easy to explore.

Love Tractor was around at the same time, initially featuring Bill Berry (future REM drummer). They were initially an instrumental alternative rock act, but later started adding vocals. Vic Chestnutt and Dreams So Real are also important early figures.

Widespread Panic is one of the most popular acts to ever emerge from Athens, but I've never been much of a fan, so you'll have to look elsewhere for advice. I do know that most of their fan community believes that the live-experience is the only way to really appreciate Widespread Panic.

These are some of the earliest, "forefathers" of the scene. The scene really burgeoned in the 90's with The Elephant 6 collective that produced my all-time favorite Athens-connected group, Neutral Milk Hotel, as well as of Montreal, Olivia Tremor Control, Apples in Stereo, Circulatory System and Elf Power. Start with the two NMH albums and then explore the other groups.

From there I would recommend listening to what interests you. Athens is the base of the Drive-by Truckers, a great altcountry band that plays here regularly. The Whigs, the Modern Skirts, Matthew Sweet, deerhunter, Azure Ray, Danger Mouse and Reptar all offer different genres, depending on where your interests lie. If you really want to explore further I recommend coming to Athens and going to shows at the 40 Watt, Caledonia Lounge or just talk to locals at the record stores and they'll let you know where to see some of the great local bands active in the city right now that you can catch playing house parties and downtown. Let me know if you want any more direction on any of the specific bands.

[–]eyesoftheworld4 1 point2 points ago


If you're going to check out Widespread Panic, don't start with their studio albums!! Jam bands have notoriously bad studio albums, as the real magic happens at shows. If you find yourself wondering, then I'd check out Widespread Panic Live in the Classic City. It's on spotify and probably can be found elsewhere, as well. It was the first Panic that I ever listened to, and while I haven't listened to much else it's the one I keep going back to. Also, /r/widespreadpanic could probably help you out if you want to know more.

[–]cmonback[S] 1 point2 points ago


amazing, thank you.

[–]grinny588 2 points3 points ago


A band that I know is from there and is awesome is Reptar