a recent photo…

– ryan

we decided to take the scenic route on our way to florida and we passed through alma, georgia where we spotted this amazing mid century bank, still in operation! alma exchange bank & trust drive-in branch, we love you.

– ryan & gub

we had a great day at satellite beach today! there was lots of fun and sun and the heat was surprisingly tame. we topped off the day with some soft serve from a roadside stand called moo’s. here’s to florida beaches in november! too bad nasa keeps delaying the shuttle launch.

– ryan & gub

nasa ended up delaying the shuttle launch this week, so we were able to attend the jónsi concert on halloween after all. the sigur ros singer played at the tabernacle in support of his first solo album. the show was super amazing; we were excited that we could attend! the songs sounded beautiful in the tabernacle and the concert was quite the multimedia experience as well. similar to sigur ros shows, there were lots of changing backdrops to go along with each song. the visuals, sometimes static and sometimes animated, were timed perfectly to the songs, adding to the aural experience.

if you ever have the chance to see jónsi or sigur ros in concert, i would highly recommend attending!

– ryan

another recent photo…

– ryan

a recent photo…

– ryan

it’s been awhile, but i spotted another pbr painting in the virginia highlands. although many of the other pbr murals have been painted over at this point, it was cool to find one i hadn’t seen before!

be sure to check out the other murals we found around atlanta in june and august.

– ryan

who would have thought that a two-piece band featuring a live harp and bass player would be one of the more impressive shows i’ve seen in a long time. on monday night i discovered a great new band called active child opening for school of seven bells. i first heard school of seven bells opening up for m83, so i had a feeling their opening band would be worth checking out as well. i was not let down!

active child is the project of “choirboy-turned-indie pop musician” pat grossi. they play music that sounds like old 80s movie soundtracks, riding the line between dancey and atmospheric. pat’s falsetto vocals were very compelling and at times reminiscent of bon iver or antony and the johnsons. other songs were more in line with old crowded house or joy division, like on their amazing cover of ceremony, a highlight of the night. you can get their debut ep from their website for super cheap or on 10″ white vinyl! it’s totally worth grabbing.

after reading more about active child, i realized i am not alone in thinking they are awesome. npr, pitchfork, and stereogum have already featured these guys.

school of seven bells were very impressive as well! i had talked up the twin sister singers to a friend before the show and was surprised to only find one up on stage. i didn’t realize until after the show that claudia, one of the sisters, had left the band a week before. besides a couple of songs though, you wouldn’t have even noticed. although i definitely would have preferred the dueling female vocals, they still rocked live and filled in the gaps quite well. they played all of the hits i wanted to hear from both of their albums and their encore sounded like a classic mogwai concert with the distortion levels cranked to deafening volumes.

– ryan

on sunday afternoon we packed a picnic and headed up to amicalola falls state park. we soaked in the amazing autumn weather with a nice picnic near the top of the falls! after lunch we headed back to the base and hiked up the mountain for some beautiful views of the falls. although we heard the hike was fairly easy, the numerous switchbacks were definitely tiring. be sure to bring some water and stretch before making the trek.

if you are looking for a peaceful getaway from atlanta, consider the 90 minute drive to this beautifal state park. be mindful though that october is peak season for state and national parks and will be super crowded.

serenity now!

– ryan & gub

amicalola falls state park

240 amicalola state park rd
dawsonville, ga 30534
706-265-4703

fall is in the air!

– ryan