Downtown bars spruce themselves up, and not just for the holidays
After a steady night of bar hopping down Broad Street I ran into a pleasant surprise. No, it wasn’t a nice young lady offering me a ZJ at a discounted price; it was a pretty sweet renovation to a new bar downtown. I’m talking about the bar that’s fit snuggly right behind Metro Coffeehouse, The First Round Bar. Alan, the owner of First Round, is trying to make the bar a legitimate venue. This meant tearing down their old stage and sound booth, and building a new one. The bar has a long way to go before the finishing touches are complete, but it’s always good to see a place making itself bigger and better. With New Year’s Eve only a couple of weeks away, I definitely see the construction crew going full force to bring in 2013 the right way.
Another bar downtown is switching it up, this time it’s Stillwater Tap Room. Matt and Barry, owners of Stillwater, aren’t messing with the stage, they’re refining the menu. Stillwater has always been known as a great place for beer on tap, live music and the laid back atmosphere. That tradition will continue by bringing in more diverse beer. Dozens of new craft beer can be found each week, I recommend the Hop Notch IPA, at 7.3 percent, it only takes a few. I’m an alcoholic.
To cap off my night of bars, I ended it at one of my old stomping grounds, The Playground. But funny enough, it didn’t look or sound anything like the Playground. It seems Skrillex has taken a residency inside of The Playground. The Transformers would even be intimidated by the sounds that were rumbling out of this place on Friday night. You can’t get mad; they were packed! But for me, the old Playgound may have died a little. No need to fret, my friends; luckily The Playground still has live music every now and again. On Saturday, December 15, The Playground will sound like old when they welcome in False Flag.
The 55th Grammy Award nominations are in and I actually got excited when I heard the nominees this year. They didn’t leave out real rock music. I’m referring to the five nominations for the Black Keys, along with singer of the Black Keys, Dan Auerbach, getting another one for producing. The combined six nominations for the Black Keys tie them up with Jay-Z, Frank Ocean, Kanye West, Mumford & Sons and fun. Here are a few highlights: Along with the Keys’ “El Camino,” Coldplay, Muse, Bruce Springsteen and Jack White all are up for Best Rock Album. One of those doesn’t fit there. Best new artist category is always a good one to watch. This year’s nominees are fun, Hunter Hayes (?), The Lumineers, Frank Ocean and, my pick, Alabama Shakes. I do have to say that the best thing the Grammys did this year was leaving Justin Bieber off the ballot. For that, I will watch your program. The full list of this year’s nominees can been seen at grammy.com.
Uh oh, look guys, it’s that time of year again! Not Christmas, Festivus! I call dibs on the Feats of Strength. I will bring the Festivus Pole if you guys are prepared for the Airing of Grievances. Sky City celebrates with the Festivus of Bands, seven crazy nights of music. I could try to name them all but I’m only allowed so much space for this article. Everything kicks off tonight, Thursday, the 13, with A Verry Merry Krunkmas Tacky Sweater Party. Enjoy music from Happy Bones, Celia Gary, She N She, Acosta and the Mason Jars, and dress to impress. To get the exact dates and lineup, head to skycityaugusta.com.
There are great bands playing all over the CSRA for the holidays, check them out right next to this column.
What else is going on around Augusta? What bands do you want to see in the New Year? Have you seen Skrillex’s haircut? Email me at matt@themetrospirit.com.You Might Also Like:
