Posted by Liz and John Attaway, 10/15/16

With a little dust in the eye, the days of Turner Field, or as Atlanta’s refer to it, the Ted, has come to an abrupt end. Gone with it are 20 years of Braves hits and misses, the beauty of the green field, the chop house, and that large Chick-fila cow looming over our heads. Au revoir, auf Wiedersehen, sayonara. But let’s not be sad, let’s celebrate that tradition with one last hurrah to pay homage to the memories. The Great Atlanta Beer Fest accomplished that this year by letting us lose in the dugout, on the field, and letting us run the bases from IPA to stout.

As far as the beer, mainstays and favorites like Cinnamon Cocoa Drafty Kilt and Burnt Hickory’s Big Shanty Graham Cracker Stout were in full force. Here’s a rundown of a few things we tried and enjoyed, which included Red Hare’s Chocolate Porter. It was definitely chocolate forward but finished smooth like a traditional porter. Side note: Red Hare just had their Sticky Stout release and had a specialty Sticky Stout brewed with Thin Mints. Dear Red Hare, pretty please make this a seasonal? Gate City also brought their Terminus Porter. It was a dark, a little smoky, but smooth at the end. Let’s not forget Burnt Hickory’s Die Kreuzen Pumpkin Porter. One of the best porters of the festival, it had pumpkin and all spice up front but then ended like a smooth porter.

After that, we went off script with my love of stouts and porters to try Wicked Weed’s Old Fashioned Ale with orange and cherry. The cherry was very prominent on the nose, but it was also a little sweet like a bourbon barrel aged beer would! There was also a cranberry pumpkin beer from Terrapin called Cranberry Pumpkinfest. It was very tart but finished with a lot of pumpkin like their original Pumpkinfest. Even though this isn’t a beer, the Red Hare Root Beer soda is so delicious! Sugary sweet. A good little treat between treats.

It never amazes us the number of new breweries that pop up at these festivals, like Gate City Brewery, Dry County, Scofflaw and so much more. Not to mention, we’re excited Abby of the Holy Goats will have a Stout in February. You know where we’ll be then! It’ll almost just be in time for the new SunTrust Stadium to welcome its first Braves fans of 2017.

Posted by Liz and John Attaway, 5/1/16

SWEETWATER 420 FEST 2016

Sweetwater 420 Fest from day one has always been a mix of music types, like rock, reggae, and rap. This year there were several big name performers of today and yesterday: Kid Rock, Cypress Hill, The Roots, Bastille, Ludacris, and so much more. Kid Rock began his set with “Don’t Stop Believin‘” as well as “Cowboy Baby” peppered in and then ending with the beginning of “Purple Rain” before the heavens opened and drove the audience to shelter. Did Prince NOT want Kid Rock to sing “Purple Rain” or was it a coincidence? Hm. Bastille flowed their way on the stage with smooth tunes. Rebelation was perfect for Earth Day and 420 belting out reggae tunes like it was going out of style. That being said, we originally intended to do what we called Sweetwater 420 Fest in pictures and write something about each band, but in writing this blog, we realized we wanted to dwell on the band that nailed it, wowed us, and killed it.

What happened to the good old days of anything from AC/DC to old Metallica to STP to Ozzy Osborne? Where are the threading guitars, mosh pits, reverb, guitar solos, building musical solos that culminate in a flurry of instruments and noise, some real, unadulterated rock?  There are a few bands that come to mind that is current and not-so-mainstream like The Joy Formidable and Silversun Pickups. We’re adding another band to that list that could be legendary: Awolnation. One of the staff for the production company that put on 420 was so wowed that he said they are the next headlining band. We argue, they already are!

With a mix of punk, rock, and harmony, Awolnation brought their A-game. When they entered the stage, dressed in mechanic’s jumpsuits, they kicked-off a great concert with hits like “Hollow Moon” and “Kill Your Heroes.” We wondered why do they wear jumpsuits on stage? We were hoping it was a shout-out to Lost’s Dharma Initiative. Pretty please? We couldn’t glean anything from the internet so there’s always hope. Crossing fingers. What we really enjoyed about Awolnation is they could have been just any other band that plays a bland melodic song with a mix of electronic and indie sound. We found they are NOT rock-lite or even good indie rock but much more. They know how to go all punk and rock-out and that was what really hit their performance home for us. The lead singer, Aaron Bruno, is also interactive and seemed to really enjoy his own music, which is refreshing. The Last song was, of course, the one that they broke on the rock scene with “SAIL!” A perfect mix of rock, electronic, and harmony. We, along with our friends in the general audience, were all too excited to hear it live. It didn’t disappoint. Rock on, AWOL. We promised our young niece a good show, so keep it up! We’re holding you to it…

Posted by Liz and John Attaway, 4/8/16

Around the corner, the church bell rings. Its noon in Atlanta on a dreary, fog-laden, barely spring day with all the hope that bacon will bring sunshine and happiness. Yes, bacon. That means BaconFest 2016 was upon us with all its bacon-y glory. That unmistakable sizzle, that smoky goodness, hilarious games, and pair it with beer, and that’s BaconFest.  This year, fresh off purchasing new digs, Dad’s Garage moved the festival from Masquerade Music Park to their new location in Old Fourth Ward. What’s ironic is this irreverent bunch of improvers now reside in a church. But you know, that’s how they like it… ironic. New place, same fun.

The best, and our favorite activity at BaconFest is always the Hobo Wine Tasting. We remember the first year that we attended and I was fascinated by the sheer nastiness of the wine. To think that this year’s best in show was Arbor Mist Blackberry is a travesty. In what world is Arbor Mist ever good? Whatever you do, DO NOT try the Thunderbird. It’s rubbing alcohol light. Stay away! Everything in between is pretty gross as well, Night Train, Cisco (Strawberry & Peach), Mad Dog 20/20, and Wild Irish Rose. Fun fact: Dayroom, a local Athens band from the late 90’s had a song called, Irish Rose. They talk about drinking cheap wine and waking up stinking like Wild Irish Rose. We assume they mean this drink. WHY, Dayroom, why? Drinking it is one thing, but smelling like it? Gross.

Another game we enjoyed this year was the Battle Shots. Based on the game, Battleship, opponents guessed the location of the shots on the board. If you hit their boat, they would drink the corresponding shot. If they hit your boat, you drink your corresponding shot. Yes, we can see where this would turn you sideways but it was just Miller Lite in there. It was looking like we would win but unfortunately a guy with a cat face-painted on his forehead beat us. This game wasn’t really about winning or losing, but about getting to drink all your beer in a fun, interesting way. It was fun!

We got Rick Rolled at BaconFest! In the church’s basement, adjacent from the photo booth was a Rock Band set up. While we were sitting there, we hear “Never gonna give you up…” Yep, we just got Rick Rolled. We all laughed about it. Some of the other games included human Foosball, which the ball kept coming out of the game and knocking over people’s beers or hitting them in the head. You could get a kiss from the Clairemont Lounge’s world-famous, Blondie. Yeah, no thanks. Plus, there were the caricatures, roasting, and face-painting.

All-in-all between the bacon, bacon chips, beer, games, and improv skits, BaconFest didn’t disappoint. The weather was a little misty, with light rain mixed in early, but gave way to a pretty nice day overall. It didn’t keep the bacon lovers away. The lines got long, so thank Caren West PR for Whole Hog VIP! Since there was no actual VIP, they made separate lines at all the stations for Whole Hogers to get up front. It was pretty nice! Go Whole Hog next year!

Posted by Liz and John Attaway, 2/15/2016

While the low clouds and frosty morning dew have plagued the land for months, the long winter wasn’t as brutal as the one before, yet the town-folk were ready for some good old-fashioned sunshine and warmer temps. Once Atlanta Winter Beer Fest comes around, there is light at the end of the cold, winter tunnel, and it’s always the best way to kick-off festival season 2016. This year, the weather was almost warm, and the beautiful day, along with the unlimited winter beer made for an ideal Atlanta festival day. We love Atlanta Winter Beerfest!

We always challenge ourselves to find new and exciting beers to chat about and this year was no exception. Over the last few years with the local brewery phenomenon, and the bigger brands clawing to keep up, beer is getting more exciting with new and inventive ingredients to step it up a notch. Be it nuts, chocolate, and everything in between, brewers are pulling out all the stops to entice beer aficionados to buy their beer. Bring it, we say. That being said there were a few fun beers we discovered at this beer festival.

The best beer that we hadn’t tried of Atlanta Winter Beer Fest was Orpheus’ The Ferryman. This Imperial Stout has a little bit of everything from the darkness of the malt, to the nuttiness of the hazelnut, and sweetness of the vanilla. It was the right balance between the sweet and bitter. Has anyone else noticed that a lot of breweries are using hazelnuts in their brew? Monday Night’s Georgian Imperial Stout has it, as well as Southern Sky had a specialty one with hazelnut for one of its employee’s birthdays. It does ad a good flavor to it. We’ll take it!

Some other good beers we discovered were Unknown Brewing Co out of Charlotte’s Silverback Stout. It was a good drinkable stout even if it was a little bitterer, hoppy than I like. It has a lot of chocolate up front and that makes up for the bitter finish at the end. Unknown Brewing just launched in Atlanta in December so you should be able to find something yummy from them at your local haunt. We’re keeping an eye out as we’d love to try the Imperial Stouts they offer. Finally, Burnt Hickory didn’t bring my favorite, Big Shanty Stout, due to the fact it was so popular they were literally OUT, but they had a good Brown Ale called Mudhoney (yes, a tribute to THAT Mudhoney). It was a balanced beer between hops and malt that ended with a sweeter honey hint. Have we mentioned we love the rock-n-roll themed names Burnt Hickory gives all their beers? They have great selection of beers AND name them something fabulous that appeals to our love of rock! Well done, gentlemen.

http://atlantawinterbeerfest.com/

 FOR MORE INFORMATION: http://www.dadsgarage.com/

By Liz and John Attaway

There is a sign in the heart of a big city that glitters against the night sky. It is notorious for its beautiful ballets and mesmerizing musicals. The town folk all hold it in the highest regard and visit it several times a year in all their finest; ladies in their ball gowns and gentlemen in their tuxes and top hats. Just think about pulling up in a Model-T and walking down the red carpet. Those days are gone but the nostalgia and the sign still stands, as glittering and prestigious as ever. Welcome to The Fabulous Fox Theatre. Juxtaposing the beauty and prestige is Dad’s Garage, an improv troupe that is irreverent and playful, while entertaining Atlanta without any of the pretense. That’s what made the Dad’s Garage & Friends event so interesting: East meets West, North meets South, Paula Abdul’s Opposites Attract. You catch the drift. Tonight, Dad’s Garage finds itself getting all dressed up, even “Schmancy”. Well played, Dad’s Garage, well played.

To go along with their new shiny shoes and bow ties, Dad’s Garage & Friends boasted many celebrity friends that Kevin Gillese, the Artistic Director of Dad’s Garage, said “you’ll never see this combination of actors again.” That’s what I call: #truth. Of those featured celebrities were Amber Nash and Lucky Yates who voice Pam and Krieger on the show Archer from FX. Followed by Fred Willard who has appeared on TV shows from Modern Family to Mad About You to Rosanne. Colin Mochrie, a frequent Dad’s Garage visiting actor, is from the original and CW reboot of Whose Line is it Anyway. Cedric Yarbough who portrayed Deputy S. Jones/Rufus from Reno 911. Gary Anthony Williams who wore a loud pink button down voices Uncle Ruckus on Adult Swim’s The Boondocks, and was recently seen in The Internship. Last but not least, there was also David Willis, who is the voice of Meatwad from Aqua Teen Hunger Force on Adult Swim.

Beyond the celebs was some very funny skits, sketches, songs, and modern dances. My favorite skit was the Atlanta Opera sings the skit that Mochrie described as, “the first opera with an NC-17 rating.” They took audience ideas like Frisbees, Batman and the Penguin conversation, and the invention of the Cotton Gin and incorporated them into a script that the Opera singers would put their spin on. It became naught quickly. Like the Batman and Penguin skit, it was like a duck with Tourette’s. Topics ranged from friends, lovers, flying, the devil (but spelled kdevil), and cotton. I laughed so hard I almost cried when the typos became rampant and the Opera Sings had to sing the words exactly as typed. The look on their faces was PRICELESS. Worth. Every. Penny.

Keeping with the Atlanta Opera, who was a partner for the night, was the Atlanta Opera sings Jaden Smith’s Tweets. Yes, Jaden Smith of Will Smith fame. The best ones were “Most Trees are Blue” and “Dying is mainstream #money.” The Atlanta Opera wasn’t the only ones singing as Yarborough and Williams took audience suggestions and were tasked with improving a song that incorporated the audience’s ideas. A young lady in the front named “Kat” gave them the suggestion of a giraffe. They sang about this giraffe to the tune of Reggae and the funniest, Gospel Hip Hop, totally made up for this event but one part choir, one part Kayne West (who was a guest host, kind of). It was a hoot.

Beyond the song shenanigans, as advertised, the Dad’s Garage troupe did their version of “Too Many Cooks” The Musical. Of course, it started with a very large family at home. Other elements that they blended into the musical was Coat, Smarf, the cat-like puppet that reminded us for Alf, and the machete wielding killer. In “Too Many Cooks” style, (SPOILER ALERT) the killer lops the head off of a bunch of the actors and ended with him standing among the dead. I think I’ve seen this before…

A few other tidbits that were amusing included Two Lies and a Truth, where Gary Anthony Williams had the best line saying that he tried to dig his way to the devil. Meatwad admitted that he got paid in tater tots (because let’s not lie, their awesome). The segment about 1-star reviews on Yelp for Atlanta Attractions included a scathing review of the beloved Clermont Lounge. The reviewer stated that it’s “a great place to get an incurable disease.” I would admit that I wouldn’t wear opened toed shoes or a long dress there. It may stick to the floor. Shudder. Finally, we got a treat with an exclusive improved Archer scene that was specially made for the event. Lucky Yates, who voices Krieger, and Amber Nash, who voices Pam both lent their voices and it was just like watching an actual Archer episode. Krieger must have really pissed off that big cat that kept attacking him. So fun.

With a few Hitler gabs and a literal choir, the Dad’s Garage and Friends came to a close. What an enjoyable night full of laughter and wonder. We’ve actually never been to an actual Dad’s Garage show, we’ll have to get out to a show and see what they do day-in and day-out to keep so many close friends (and good ones at that). Maybe once they take over that church in the Old Fourth Ward. Dad’s Garage has been around since 1995. They used to be located in Inman Park and have been displaced recently to perform at 7 Stages Theatre until their permanent home is finished. ANNOUNCEMENT: They will be opening on New Year’s Even 2015-16 in their new location! Cue the Choir.

Want to get out to The Fox Theatre? Here’s their web address to see upcoming shows and ticket information here: https://foxtheatre.org/