The Black Lips & Deerhunter

Win a pair of tickets to see The Black Lips & Deerhunter play the Commodore on July 23

The Georgia Straight presents The Black Lips & Deerhunter

Playing garage-flavored punk rock with a Southern accent, a messed-up and bluesy undertow, and the gleefully destructive impact of a 15-year-old with a bag of firecrackers, the Black Lips are an Atlanta-based combo who after their debut in 2000 soon developed a reputation as one of the Peach State's wildest bands. The Black Lips consisted of Cole Alexander on lead vocals, guitar, and harmonica, Ben Eberbaugh on lead guitar, Jared Swilley on bass, and Joe Bradley on drums when they released their first single. After a second single and a handful of out-of-control live shows that led to them being banned from several Georgia venues, they caught the attention of Greg Shaw at Bomp! Records, who signed the band to a recording deal. The Black Lips cut their self-titled first album in mid-2002, but before it could be released, Ederbaugh was killed in a freak auto accident when a driver going the wrong way crashed into his car at a toll booth. The death occurred only a few days before the Black Lips were to set out on an East Coast and Midwest tour; believing Ederbaugh would have wanted them to continue, the band set out as a three-piece and later added Ian Saint Pé a new lead guitarist for a more extensive touring, scheduled to support the release of the album. The Black Lips jumped to In the Red for the 2005 effort Let It Bloom. Since that time, the band put out Los Valientes del Mundo Nuevo — the band's first release for Vice — and Good Bad Not Evil, both in 2007. The Black Lips have recently released their 5th album 200 Million Thousand.

Deerhunter is an experimental noise rock band from Atlanta, fronted by the compellingly odd singer Bradford Cox. Cox’s vocal style blends vocal experimentation along the lines of Meredith Monk or Yoko Ono with a more direct and punky howl inspired by the Fall's Mark E. Smith. Cox is also a striking on-stage presence: the exceedingly skinny 6'4" lead singer has Marfan syndrome, a genetic disorder of the connective tissue that gives him abnormally long and spindly limbs. Cox often exaggerates his otherworldly look by performing in Victorian-style party frocks and engaging in Iggy Pop-style acts of ritual self-abasement while his bandmates churn out an aggressive mix of industrial-grind guitars and fractured dance rhythms that often recalls earlier Georgia art punks like the Method Actors and Pylon. Deerhunter was formed in 2001 by Cox and drummer and keyboardist Moses Archuleta; guitarists Colin Mee and Lockett Pundt and bassist Josh Fauver completed the lineup over the following years. Deerhunter signed with the local Atlanta indie Stickfigure Records for their 2005 debut: nominally untitled, the album is also known as "Turn It Up, Faggot" (a phrase that doesn't appear on the sleeve), an insult that Cox claimed was often thrown at the band during their gigs. Deerhunter then signed to the higher-profile indie Kranky (Godspeed You Black Emperor!, etc.) for their second album, Cryptograms, as well as the EP Fluorescent Grey. Collin Mee left Deerhunter and was replaced by former cheerleader Whitney Petty. The band recorded their third album Microcastle at New York City's Rare Book Room studio; the album was released digitally two months before it arrived on CD in fall 2008; like Fluorescent Grey, it found Brad Cox and company moving in a more pop-oriented direction.

Prizing:

• A pair of tickets

For your chance to win enter your details below along with the answer to this skill testing question:
Where are the Black Lips from?

Visit www.myspace.com/theblacklips for the answer.

One prize per winner. Georgia Straight contest winners during last 30 days are ineligible to enter.

Contest Deadline: July 20, 2009
Event Date: July 23, 2009
Winners will be notified within 5 business days of the drawing date.

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