The chewed up bubblegum underneath the table sticks to my fingertips as I attempt to pull the table closer to me while sitting alone in the seedy upstairs section of a downtown Athens bar. The announcer, who only moments before appeared to be a member of the audience, hops on stage and proceeds to drop f-bombs as he attempts to coerce the seated crowd to stand up. “Tasty Tuesday” is a recurring event of spoken word, rap and jazz hosted by Tasty World, music venue and bar in Athens, the second Tuesday every month with a different lineup each occasion.
The opening acts of “Tasty Tuesday” were an eclectic mix. Amaris, the first poet, spoke her verses slowly and steady, akin to the style of the beatniks of the 1960’s and discussed themes of freedom and makes reference to major players in Black history. Celest Ngeve, the second poet to perform spoken word, had a style reminiscent to that of rap icon Missy Elliott –up-tempo and racy. All of her poems were about sex. They were often drowned out by the competing noise of the drums flooding in from the concert downstairs and a poetry reading seemed to sedate the audience who came to hear a live music show. The final opening act was an underwhelming R&B artist named Fly (Cedric). Fly attempted to serenade the ladies of the crowd by singing into a microphone over the tracks of a karaoke tape.
When A is A started playing their jazz-infused pop tunes the crowd shifted from a segregated audience to an amalgamation of all races. Created in December 2006, A is A is made up of four and is made up of solely students from the University of Georgia. The band members of A is A include Disha Chhabra on vocals and acoustic guitar, Vikas Shah on the drums, Jason Collier on the trumpet and Aaron Miller on the electric bass, keyboard and the synthesizer. They began their set with a jazzy cover of “Killing Me Softly”, originally recorded by Roberta Flack. The well-known cover helped the band to ease into their original numbers. Chhabra’s voice is full-bodied and soulful while the mood of the music is dreamlike laden with ambient sounds. Though A is A touches on some depressing themes, such as losing someone important in your life, the lyrics of the bands songs transform everyday occurrences into memorable happenstances. The ambiance of A is A’s sound is reminiscent to the music of Carol King and Aimee Mann. While listening to A is A play their set I got the mental image of being on a long train ride and just noticing that abandoned house by the railroad tracks for the first time.
The Flagpole failed to mention the names of any of the poets, Fly or A is A when advertising for “Tasty Tuesday.” A is A does has a Myspace profile but did not promote their recent show at Tasty World on their webpage. I found it interesting that A is A gathered a crowd at Tasty World through a grassroots advertising schemes. I heard about A is A through a Facebook message I received sent to all people in the band members’ extended network, which is a system of acquaintances based on who you take courses with. This alternative to mainstream advertising caught my eye because I knew they were an up-and-coming band that was created by students and I wanted to check it out. Overall this show put the melody back in my otherwise grueling tuneless Tuesday.
http://www.myspace.com/dishachhabra
The opening acts of “Tasty Tuesday” were an eclectic mix. Amaris, the first poet, spoke her verses slowly and steady, akin to the style of the beatniks of the 1960’s and discussed themes of freedom and makes reference to major players in Black history. Celest Ngeve, the second poet to perform spoken word, had a style reminiscent to that of rap icon Missy Elliott –up-tempo and racy. All of her poems were about sex. They were often drowned out by the competing noise of the drums flooding in from the concert downstairs and a poetry reading seemed to sedate the audience who came to hear a live music show. The final opening act was an underwhelming R&B artist named Fly (Cedric). Fly attempted to serenade the ladies of the crowd by singing into a microphone over the tracks of a karaoke tape.
When A is A started playing their jazz-infused pop tunes the crowd shifted from a segregated audience to an amalgamation of all races. Created in December 2006, A is A is made up of four and is made up of solely students from the University of Georgia. The band members of A is A include Disha Chhabra on vocals and acoustic guitar, Vikas Shah on the drums, Jason Collier on the trumpet and Aaron Miller on the electric bass, keyboard and the synthesizer. They began their set with a jazzy cover of “Killing Me Softly”, originally recorded by Roberta Flack. The well-known cover helped the band to ease into their original numbers. Chhabra’s voice is full-bodied and soulful while the mood of the music is dreamlike laden with ambient sounds. Though A is A touches on some depressing themes, such as losing someone important in your life, the lyrics of the bands songs transform everyday occurrences into memorable happenstances. The ambiance of A is A’s sound is reminiscent to the music of Carol King and Aimee Mann. While listening to A is A play their set I got the mental image of being on a long train ride and just noticing that abandoned house by the railroad tracks for the first time.
The Flagpole failed to mention the names of any of the poets, Fly or A is A when advertising for “Tasty Tuesday.” A is A does has a Myspace profile but did not promote their recent show at Tasty World on their webpage. I found it interesting that A is A gathered a crowd at Tasty World through a grassroots advertising schemes. I heard about A is A through a Facebook message I received sent to all people in the band members’ extended network, which is a system of acquaintances based on who you take courses with. This alternative to mainstream advertising caught my eye because I knew they were an up-and-coming band that was created by students and I wanted to check it out. Overall this show put the melody back in my otherwise grueling tuneless Tuesday.
http://www.myspace.com/dishachhabra
Both profiles have audio files you can listen to and learn more about the music of A is A.
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