Lemme tell ya' 'bout...Savannah

by Mara

Born in Durham. Raised in Asheville. Been a Southern girl all my life, but not till last month did I finally venture all the way down to the lovely city of Savannah. Of course, I hadn't planned for it to be a mere jaunt out of town, with no purpose but to see a different place, with different faces. I endured the long hot drive for a worthy cause-GAM. GAM ! Had the town been a complete disappointment, the people rude, the food rotten, the air foul (actually, it did smell a bit sour in pockets), the beer flat, GAM still would have been good enough for me. That I fell in love with the city was just a happy accident.

Part of my excitement about Savannah may, however, be attributed to the lingering residue of MSV1: My Visit to Athens. A week earlier, I made the shorter, but not short enough, drive to another popular Georgia town to see a different fantastic rock and roll show - Challenge of the Future and Flux lnformation Sciences. The Hi-Hat club was nice, and good art rock made it worth the drive. A huge bar, nice PA, clever little balcony behind the stage...too bad only ten of us were blessed with a rocked out performance including COTF's painfully moving renditions of Brian Eno's "Baby's on Fire" and Gary Numan's`Down in the Park." Athens, however, did not impress me. The streets were too wide. There was way too much convenient on street parking.

Every store front was taken by a bar, restaurant, shop, coffee house, or record store that looked ridiculously hip / successful. In the two blocks it took for us to get from the car to the club, we were assaulted by cat calls from three different nests of frat boys. (At least they didn't chase us like yellow jackets.) Am I supposed to yell "fuck you !" across the street of someone else's pretty little town? Remember, young lady, you are not in Kansas.

Where Athens falls flat, Savannah has depth and haut.. From soul food charm to old money attitude, this town is complicated. Streets are filled with fancy restaurants, thrifty clothing shops, empty store fronts, vacant lots, upscale grocery stores, and bars, bars, bars. I heard there was a record store, but I didn't see it. I heard there was one hip dress shop too, but it did not reveal itself to me. Probably a good thing, considering I spent most of my money on a rack of lamb at Cafe Metropole and jack'n'cokes at the Velvet Elvis. No regrets. Cafe Metropole was interesting. It's an upscale restaurant set in a garage. All four doors open to a lovely parking lot, where your pretentious art student waitron will serve you you r twenty dollar entrée. I Iike to eat with my hands in a place Iike this. I mean, really, to get your twenty dollars worth of lamb meat, you really do have to suck on the bones. Call ahead for reservations.

Come as you wish you were to the Velvet Elvis, at least when GAM's on. be prepared to leave covered in sweat, beer, and bruises. Know that GAM is the home team and they have the advantage. Be sure, as well, to avoid the Flashback Club?...Club Flashback?...down the street.. No matter how many times the door man compliments you on your hol0graphic pants, do not go in. You can find a better dance party in an Asheville living room. But GAM. GAM !

GAM gives me whiplash. (Maybe it would help if I stopped thrashing my head around.) I was moving from the very first song, through every costume change, every burning prop, every stunt Keith could conjure up.

Keith, by the way, is the little guy with the huge voice. Unfortunately, his voice did not boom over the thrashing like it usually does, but the show, nevertheless, rocked until 3 am. The last band I saw play later than that was the Merle. They had great stamina and an extensive song list, but could you imagine either Chris G. or Y. or Jamie, for that matter, paint his face and jump around the stage like a monkey? Ha. Ha ha.

Six plus years of playing together have made GAM a well-oiled monster. Their self-confidence and charizma pour off the stage and the audience punches right back with enthusiasm and electricity. Unfortunately, we hear that this Savannah show was the bass player Mike's last show. This made the show extra-special but CAM's future uncertain. I heard a rumor that a hot chick would be joining the band to cover the low end. Bass! Keyboard! We don't know yet, but you might've seen her at the show covered in red paint. I told her I'd give her some of my sparklers if she got up on stage to dance, but lo', the sparklers were all sparked out by the time she crawled up there. She did make up for it with some serious hip action. Now let's see if she can rock.

GAM will be playing Friday and Saturday nights of Bele Chere at Vincent's Ear.