A Guide to Savannah Stopover 2012

TheBlueIndian.com’s Guide to Savannah Stopover 2012

Savannah Stopover has returned for their 2012 festivities and what we think is the best lineup so far. The festival, which has featured the likes of Twin Tigers, Oberhofer, Sunglasses, Murder By Death, Reptar and more brings a lineup to town that we’re sure will have everyone out and about for the 4 days it’s set to go on.

The festival began a few years ago as an ideal routing location for East Coast based bands headed to SXSW in Austin to get together and meet one another, plus share their music with one of the most responsive audiences in Georgia, as well as a chance to showcase up-and-coming local and regional talent.

2012’s fest features headlining artists THE WAR ON DRUGS and THE LOVE LANGUAGE and a strong support billing from CAVEMAN, GRIMES, JUKEBOX THE GHOST, OBERHOFER, THE MEN, LITTLE TYBEE plus dozens more touring bands and locals. We’re particularly excited to see how well Georgia is being represented at both this fest and SXSW. We’ll actually be hosting a few of these artists in Macon around the time of the event so be sure to look out for that as well. With over 70 bands playing on 10+ stages, we figured we help you all out by giving you a run down of the bands that we’d recommend or that we’re interested in checking out. Tickets are $75.00 for general 4-day admission and $120.00 for 4-day VIP admission. Thumbs up to the SS crew for putting on yet another awesome event!

Wednesday, March 7th 2012

The opening night kick off features just four bands on two stages but is a perfect example of the good times you can expect out of the weekend.

Dinosaur Feathers (Brooklyn, New York) has metamorphosed through multiple incarnations: Solo bedroom pop project, dance party karaoke machine, and – most recently – rock band. With the release of the Eli Crews-helmed “Whistle Tips,” acoustic strumming gives way to electric quack; trap kit pummeling replaces drum machine pulses — all while preserving the sweet melodies and rich harmonies you may have come to know and/or love. We were able to see these guys at Deluna Fest last year and they surely impress. They’ll be going on stage at Telfair Square for an all ages show at 7:00pm so get there early and show some love to yet another group of New Yorkers making their way through our great state!

Pond follows them up at 8:00pm. Don’t be too surprised if you haven’t heard of these guys, but you may be familiar with associated acts. Coming all the way from Perth, Australia (!!!!), these lo-fi rockers are in the middle of a North American tour that see themes visiting all around the country. One-fourth of Pond comes from the group Tame Impala, whom we’re big fans of. This may be your only chance to catch them for a while in the South so don’t miss out!

Oberhofer is the brain child of 21 year old Brad Oberhofer. Initially a solo project, Brad decided that he’d been writing material that was just “too big” for one man. After recruiting a group of friends, they arranged the material to match their newfound lineup. After releasing their acclaimed debut Time Capsules last year, they’ll be featured at SXSW and the one festival on everyone’s mind this year, Coachella. Look out for Oberhofer in 2012. You’ll be happy that you paid attention. They close out the all ages Telfair Square stage at 9:00pm


Dive rounds out the night at The Jinx at 11:00pm. The Brooklyn based group, self described as “One part THC and two parts MDMA”, recently returned from a full US tour with Beach Fossils and crafted out two stunning singles with their debut EP to be released sometime in early March. Get tangled up with them. If any set of the first day is going to capture the spirit of Savannah Stopover, it will more than likely be theirs. The resulting music is as cavernous as it is enveloping, asking you to get lost in it’s tangles in an era that demands your attention be focused into 140 characters.

Thursday, March 8th 2012

First things first, we are completely 100% behind the line up at Blowin’ Smoke. River Whyless and Little Tybee have both made incredible impressions in Macon and will actually be at The Hummingbird Stage & Taproom on Saturday the 10th. Jon Lindsay will be in Macon on the 9th at Roasted, along with fellow SXSW-bound group DRGN King. These are three bands the we love and support and can’t wait to see what 2012 holds for them.

Grandchildren’s debut album, Everlasting, feels like a culmination of all that restlessness. A sonic collage of the sentimental and the confrontational- the album is a safe haven for multiple realities- fusing tribal beats, frayed electronics, fireside folk melodies, richly-woven orchestral-pop flourishes and even field recordings from singer Aleks Martray’s journeys across Central America, the Caribbean and Africa. They’ll be kicking things off at the Congress Street Social Club at 10:00pm


Fine Peduncle is a solo Indie/electronic/neo-soul performer from Knoxville, TN who loops electronics, samples, bass, and vocals live to build psychedelic sex jams. Cole Murphy is the creative brains behind this project, confronting themes like entomology, sexuality, and occult philosophy (Bugs, Sex, Magic) in his work. Since starting Fine Peduncle in late 2010, Murphy has released four EPs (GLEN, Obtect Pupa, Ecdysis, Aedeagus) and has played festivals such as Bonnaroo and Moogfest. Disrobing and dancing madly while belting soul over dirty beats, Fine Peduncle is making insects sexy. Cole will be starting his set at Dosha at 11:00pm.

Chamberlin is the biggest band from Vermont that no one there has ever really heard of. As their debut album Bitter Blood (Roll Call/EMI) drops, the eight-month-old act finds themselves criss-crossing the country in the midst of national tours, having played but a handful of shows in their home state until they were selected to open for Grace Potter & The Nocturnals sold out 2011 tour. These guys will be closing out the night at 12:00am at Loco’s.

Friday, March 9th

As one of the many local artists selected to play Stopover, Jamison Murphy caught our attention quickly when reading through the lineup. He is an indie-folk songwriter and musician who’s influences include the Mountain Goats, Olivia Tremor Control, and Vic Chesnutt, as well as writers such as O’Connor and Joyce. He plays a multitude of instruments and is currently working on his fourth album. We asked around to a few people we know down in Savannah and they said only good things of the work of his they’ve heard. He’s got an early set so all you day drinkers and early birds head to Blowin’ Smoke at 5:00pm


Hubble is the guitar-centric solo project of N.Y. native Ben Greenberg, perhaps best known for his gymnastic fretwork in the avant-jazz collective Zs. Like that project, the 26-year-old multi-instrumentalist could be described as DIY Brooklyn’s answer to 1970s Manhattan crossover composers like Glenn Branca and Rhys Chatham, artists who merged the endless repetitions of minimalism with the amplitude and instrumentation of punk. Greenberg is a trained jazz guitarist who’s been gigging around the city in rock bands of all stripes since he was in middle school. He was a founding member of the defunct New York art-punk trio Pygmy Shrews, and was recently recruited to play with local rock iconoclasts the Men, whose Leave Home LP he engineered. You can check him out at The Telfair Museum at 7:30pm


Christ, Lord is a six piece [accordion, violin, trumpet, double bass, drums, guitar] Atlanta-based act heavily influenced by Eastern European and Roma music as well as other contemporary artists. The band was started in August 2009 by Christian Ballew and Brandon Camarda. Over time, they have incorporated new musicians, sounds, and styles to their music. Christ, Lord has released one full length album and an EP, with another full length set for release in May 2012.“With no fewer than six members, the band utilizes upright bass, violin, cello, trumpet, clarinet, accordion and drums. Their first album titled “Magnalia Christi” draws from influences ranging gypsy, vaudeville, folk, and jazz. The band remains beautifully ramshackle.” -Performer Magazine. For fans of Beirut, Andrew Bird and the like, they’ll bring their noise to Blowin’ Smoke starting at 8:30pm.

Known for rowdy shows and catchy rock songs, Turf War started in 2008 as a bedroom solo project for lead singer John Robinson and quickly turned into a full band with Brian McGrath filling in on drums and backup vocals, Cecil Moss on Guitar, and Bradley Morris on bass. They created a sound reminiscent of early Replacements and brought on a full party attitude to their live sets. In October of 2011, many shows later (more than a few ending in broken guitars and beer soaked clothes) their debut album Years Of Living Dangerously was released by Old Flame Records. After supporting acts like Black Lips, Titus Andronicus, Vivian Girls and Free Energy they have built a reputation as a band that can hold their own a stage and have the crowd loudly singing along by the second chorus. Turf War heads down to the Wormhole and will be starting their set right around 10:00pm.

Triathalon is the work of Adam Intrator and his collection of songs written during his early years of college. His love of 90’s rock and surf inspired music mixed with lessons of growing up and love learned the hard way helped create a simple and catchy reverb-drenched sound.He quickly collaborated with his friend Alex to produce a 5-song EP (Relationchips). Adam finally had the opportunity to record with the collection of instruments he had envisioned from the beginning. After being asked to play locally, the necessity of a full band was apparent. The majority of the band was assembled in under a week’s time with Alex joining on drums, followed by Mike on bass and Derrick on lead guitar. With only time for one full practice before their first show,the cards were stacked against them. Their ability to mesh with one another from the beginning allowed the show to be a wild success. After the show, Hunter was recruited to help shred on guitar. Since then, the band has been playing locally several times a month and has received praise from blogs and out-of-state radio stations. You can get your feet moving to their set at Loco’s starting at 11:00pm.

The Men yes, “The,” are a four-piece post punk outfit from Brooklyn, NY. Their catalog, which began in 2008 with a hand-dubbed self-released demo cassette, has grown to include two LP’s – We Are the Men and Immaculada – two more tapes, and a 7-inch. They have toured three times, played over 75 shows and have grown a following of die hard fans crowding into living rooms and basements throughout the five boroughs, desperately trying to see them. The buzz in their hometown has grown so fervent that the Village Voice debuted this album’s first single, “Bataille,” a full six months before the record was scheduled to street. The Men go on at The Jinx at 12:00am.

Saturday, March 10th

The marvelously enticing debut EP by Athens, Georgia artist Young Benjamin is a surprisingly sagacious set, particularly for a 21-year-old songwriter. The songs were recorded at Popheart Productions in Athens, GA by Suny Lyons (Hope for Agoldensummer, pacificUV, Electrophoria) and chronicle a man’s diagnosis, escapism, and eventual death due to Alzheimer’s. Young Benjamin’s creator, Athens musician Matt Whitaker (Emergent Heart, The Premonitions), started rotations as a Music Therapist at a local rehabilitation hospital in spring of 2011, and while there, many of the patients he saw were in the late stages of Alzheimer’s disease. His interactions with these individuals, many of whom had little to no recollection of the life they had experienced inspired Whitaker to begin exploring, in his own writing, the nature of memory, illness, and death. In June Young Benjamin was born, when Matt took the summer as an opportunity to immerse himself fully in a solo project, focusing on the music he wrote which was inspired by his experiences at the hospital. He bestowed upon the project a name given to him 10 years earlier by his great-grandfather while he suffered in the grips of dementia. Matt began playing shows under this name, using a looping pedal to orchestrate dense, layered accompaniments, blurring the lines between chillwave and electro-acoustic music. Young Benjamin will be playing two sets, one at 1:00pm at The Ships of The Sea Museum and the other at 11:00pm at Dosha.

Secret Mountains have been well traveled through the east coast and midwest. Throughout the past two years they have played over 100 shows in and out of Baltimore and in August 2009 had their first tour which hit cities from the east coast to the midwest, USA. This past summer they completed an extensive two week tour through the heart of the south, including stops in Mississippi and New Orleans curving north from Florida up to Brooklyn, NY. In the spring of 2011 Secret Mountains made the trek to Austin, Tx to participate in SXSW. While in Austin the band played 8 shows during their 4 day stay and was named one of SXSW 2011 “best kept secrets” by numerous blogs. 10:00pm at The Wormhole.

Eternal Summers take the hazy, lazy beach vibe of summer and segue into autumn, with dreamy vocal lines floating over distorted guitar lines soaked in undulating reverb. This is for the changing leaves, the early dusks, the cool nights– the last days of summer.” -Pitchfork

“You think you might get bowled over with its ramshackle guitars, but singer Nicole’s smooth, sugary vocals stream in and hold the song together like a velvet ribbon on a birthday package, unwavering and fealty.” -Fader

If those two reviews aren’t enough to make you want to check out Eternal Summers, then maybe you’re just not really into having fun..Just saying. Check it out at 12:00am at Live Wire as they close out the weekend in proper fashion.

 

While these aren’t necessarily the best, the classiest, the dirtiest or the most entertaining bands you’re going to see at Stopover, it’s who we would recommend and we’re excited to see. With over 70 bands playing over the four days, there’s bound to be at least a few artists that suit your musical taste buds. Get out and support live music in Georgia and what we hope will grow to be another successful Southern music festival. See you there!