Store Profile:

Boutique Guitar Exchange:

A Dazzling Selection In A Cozy Store

On one of Atlanta’s hippest streets (alongside Young Blood Gallery and Boutique, Vacation Boutique & Gallery and The Highland Inn’s funky ballroom) sits Boutique Guitar Exchange. Comfortable yet sleek, Boutique Guitar Exchange has instruments lining every inch of the walls from the shiny wood floors up to the ceiling. The instruments are displayed like the pieces of art they are, with the most-desired in framed shadow boxes. But don’t let the highbrow atmosphere deter you. There are deals on new and pre-owned gear to be had, from Gibson to Suhr. And to test drive your instrument or amps, there are two rooms (one for electric and one for acoustic) to lose yourself in.

Phone: (404) 733 0445 or

Toll-free (877) 6GUITAR

Email: boutiqueguitarexchange@comcast.net

Address: 676 Highland Ave., Suite A, Atlanta, GA 30307

Website: www.boutiqueguitarexchange.com

Studio Profile:

Metronome Studios:

Expert Hip-Hop Mixing

Joel Mullis is a man who rarely sits still. Having started his career at Tree Sound as an intern, he climbed the famous studio’s ladder to engineer. He left to become a chief engineer for Billy Hume’s Zone Studios and then went to work at The Zone, where he mixed and engineered music for acts like Ying Yang Twins and Bonecrusher. Then he took a complete 180 and opened his own studio, Fatback, which catered towards Mullis’ rock side, producing records for acts like Attractive Eighties Women and Spectralux.

While he’s not planning on leaving that studio to anyone else any time soon, Mullis recently started back down the avenue of urban music, opening Metronome Studios in Decatur this past May.

Gear: A Room running Protools HD, B Room running Protools LE, Degidesign C24 console,

Neumann & Blue Mics, Universal Audio LA610, Mic Preamps, Distressor Compressor

Clients: VIC (“Get Silly”), Mr. Magic (“Lou Swag” featuring Hurricane Chris)

Booking Contact: Joel Mullis

Phone: (404) 371-1060

Email: fatbackstudio@gmail.com

Website: www.myspace.com/virtuo

Manchildinsider.com: A New Way To Release Music

For musicians, trying to make a living by selling CDs has always been more than just a challenge. Considering how much money goes into the process of making a record and how long it takes for that first check to arrive, one is lucky enough to be merely broke rather than in debt. With the landscape of the music industry continuously changing, more and more artists are following the late trend of allowing fans to digitally download an entire album for free or pay what they feel it is worth (as Radiohead did with In Rainbows in 2007).

Other artists like Atlanta-native MC Manchild of hip-hop duo Mars ILL have broken even further away from the traditional formula of selling records and thought outside of the box.

“After starting up and running an independent label and all it entails, and after essentially being signed to a major [EMI] through Gotee, I knew it was time for a different chapter of releasing new music,” says Manchild. “One night, my wife and I were watching ‘the big idea’ with this Donny Deutsche character and he keeps yapping about ‘the million dollar idea’ and how each of us passes over a goldmine every day. I suppose that got me thinking.”

A couple of phone calls, a few favors and some days later, the idea became a reality with www. manchildinsider.com, which he calls “an exclusive subscription site” to his music. What the website entails is five brand new songs each month for $5 total. Fans have a choice to pay on the monthly basis or subscribe for the whole year for a discounted rate. After subscribing, fans are given a username and password that allows them to read blog entries, download tracks and lyrics (sometimes even a cappella versions for remixes) and leave comments on the site.

Of course, there are pros and cons to dedicating oneself to such an amount of work in a short period of time.

“The upside is that I’m secure in what I’m making financially from music each month,” Manchild explains. “Musically, it keeps me sharp to be forced to write, record and release five new songs each month. On the flip side, five songs a month is a lot of work! It’s kind of an all-consuming affair.”

The website has grown in subscriptions and content since its launch in February, and the feedback from the fan base has been very positive according to Manchild. Yet, he acknowledges that such an undertaking would not be possible without the help of producers providing beats for free and close friends assisting in engineering songs and developing the site for cut rates. When asked whether or not he’d recommend other artists going a similar route, he honestly states, “There is a small percentage of artists who can be prolific enough over an extended period of time to offer this to their fans. If someone were thinking of it, I’d suggest a lot of calculation and forethought before hand. If you can’t dedicate 10 to 15 hours a month to it, it can’t work.”

That’s not to say that it can’t be done, but that it takes lots of dedication and confidence in one’s music and also a business mindset to pull it off. Whether or not other musicians will follow a similar formula is unpredictable, but the idea serves as a great testing ground for future ways of releasing music.

-Wahid Khoshravani

www.manchildinsider.com

In the News

The once-forgotten Kirkwood Ballers Club, a weekly improvised open mic collaboration of Atlanta’s most adventurous and experimental musicians and stage performers, is back once again as of August 7. The newest home for the event is now the historic Highland Inn in Poncey Highlands. Some of the past performers have included Black Lips, Deerhunter, Girl Talk, King Khan and BBQ Show and many other (mostly obscure) acts. The event is free and open to the public every Thursday. Doors open at 8 p.m. and music starts at 9 p.m. Musicians must sign up at the door on the night of the event for a chance to be able to play live.

www.myspace.com/kirk

woodballersclub

The first inaugural Westobou Festival, a 10-day arts festival celebrating music, dance, theater, visual arts and poetry, will kick off September 18 in Augusta, Ga. and last until September 27. Some of the highlights include a grand finale acoustic concert with Lyle Lovett and John Hiatt, a “Cirque de la Symphonie” concert featuring the Augusta symphony and a James Brown retrospective presented by the Augusta Museum of History. Prices for the various events during the festival range from free to $45.

www.westoboufestival.com

Over at Exocet Studios, Jason Kingslan has been working alongside producer Dru Castro in completing the newest record by India.Arie. The album is tentatively titled Volume II: Love And Politics but no release date has been set. In other news, Kingsland also just recently completed an LP for Marietta-based band named Dear Enemy with help from producer Corey Lowery of local group Dark New Day.

www.exocetstudios.com

The Liverhearts are in a bit of a transitional mode right now. Their bass player Matt is leaving for Las Vegas for a year, though he has plans to eventually come back afterwards. They are currently obtaining a new member, with hope that in time they will once again be back to becoming a four piece group. They are currently busy writing new songs, while the previous record Ornament, released earlier this year, is now available on iTunes.

www.myspace.com/lvrhrts

Atlanta indie rock staple Deerhunter has finally set a release date for its much anticipated new album. Microcastle, the follow up to last year’s highly acclaimed Cryptograms, will be coming out October 28 via Kranky in North America and 4AD globally. On the record, fellow Atlanta rocker Cole Alexander of the Black Lips will share vocal duties on one track, while guitarist Lockett Pundt will take over for singer Bradford Cox on a few songs as well.

www.myspace.com/deer

hunter

Lo-fi garage rockers Howlies single/EP debut Sea Level was released August 12 from their record label OverUnder. It contains two album tracks, “Sea Level” and “Dirt Woman,” and one b-side,

“Baby Shakes” (acoustic version). All the songs were produced by Kim Fowley and recorded in California. A full-length album is expected to follow up sometime in late fall 2008.

www.howlies.com

The full-length untitled debut LP by Gringo Star will be out sometime in early October. The album was produced by Ben H. Allen and was completed in July. The band is expecting to support the album with a U.S. tour in October and a U.K. tour in November.

www.myspace.com/the

gringostars

Things are getting quite busy over at Doppler Studios, where Universal Motown artists Chamillionaire, Shawty Redd and London are in the process of completing or having completed their latest albums. J Records artist Monica is working with producer Bryan MichaelCox for the reality TV show The Single Monica, and independent Athens group Idol Showdown have just completed their EP. Columbia Records artist Bow Wow is also in the process of working on an upcoming release.

www.dopplerstudios.com

Rodney Mills Masterhouse will be producing the 30th anniversary Georgia Music Hall of Fame show, which will be broadcast live on September 20, and already has an all-star cast of inductees and performers set in place. They have finished a new record for V.I.C. and a follow-up entry from last year’s Soulja Boy album. Athens-based band Love Tractor has completed its latest recording, and Atlanta rappers Baby D & DJ Unk both collaborated on their soonto- be forthcoming album. Producer Billy Bowers has also finalized a full-length LP for Seattle rockers Supersuckers.

www.rodneymills.com