Live Photos & Review: Atlanta Mess-Around, Day 2 (Gentleman Jesse, NOBUNNY, Hex Dispensers and more) @ The Earl 11/15/08

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[Above: Hex Dispensers]

[Cheap Time]

Although we missed Hex Dispensers almost entirely (blame the beer, the good-natured conversation of all in attendance and the fresh air outside the Earl), Cheap Time was a delight. This fellow Volunteer State troupe is led by Jeffrey Novak (of Rat Traps fame) and originally included Jemina Pearl and Nathan Vasquez of the recently-defunct Be Your Own Pet. Cheap Time makes fast, glammy rock that sounds pretty much like its name. Great fun, possibly best encapsulated by the song "People Talk," which is featured on the band's MySpace page.

[NOBUNNY]

Next up was the mysterious, fuzzy-faced Bay Area underground rock legend known as NOBUNNY. As the crowd waited for him to appear onstage, his backing comrades for the evening, Mess-Around Day One highlight Wax Museums, appeared, wearing bunny noses and scantily clad denim outfits, to tune their instruments. And just when it seemed like NOBUNNY himself (the man behind the bunny prefers to never reveal his true identity) wasn't going to show, a creature clothed in nothing but a terrifying mask/wig combo, a t-shirt, some tight briefs and a pair of high heels slithered through the crowd (on the ground, on his stomach) and onto the stage.

What followed was a much-needed half-hour shot in the arm of crunchy, lo-fi, one-to-three-minute blasts of fun. NOBUNNY worked the house like James Brown, drinking from one of his high heels, stripping off his t-shirt, slipping into headliner Gentleman Jesse's "I Don't Wanna Know" mid-song and inspiring the crowd to sing along in gaping awe throughout. "This'll all be over soon," he said a few songs in, but no one in the room wanted his set to end.

[Gentleman Jesse and His Men]

"Oh, I get to follow NONBUNNY?" Jesse Smith said, exasperated, as he stepped up to the mic next. "Great." But the Gentleman needn't worry, as he and his crew put on one of their best sets in recent memory, including highlights "Highland Crawler," "All I Need Tonight," "Hands Together" and, of course, "I Don't Wanna Know." It was his third time on stage over the two-day fest, but he gave a shout-out to drummer Dave Rahn, who played in approximately 4.2 quillion bands over the weekend. Rahn's response to the praise? A shrug and a drag off his cigarette-- which summed up the easy-going, casual fun of the inaugural Atlanta Mess-Around quite succinctly, come to think of it.

Listen to NOBUNNY's "Mess Me Up":

Related links:
Paste:Local Atlanta: Live Photos & Review: Atlanta Mess-Around, Day 1 (Blade II, Carbonas, Baby Shakes and more) @ The Earl 11/14/08
Paste:Local: Atlanta: Atlanta Mess-Around to celebrate DIY, rock n' roll
News: The Black and Whites tour, mess around