It's Baaa-aack

McGhee's Irish Pub has returned to The Strip. Closed down because of under-age drinking, the pub, after a long official-type process, is back with brand new owners and a brand new liquor license. Under-agers should not get their hopes up though. McGhee's is determined to make sure the trouble does not happen again, according to kitchen manager Joe Lawson.

The pub has increased monitoring both at the door and the kitchen to make sure there is no illegal drinking, he says. The place has a more friendly atmosphere, he adds—people do not have to have a beer to sit around and eat or talk.

But considering the collegiate clientele and the fact that McGhee's is on The Strip, it seems likely that there will be at least as much beer as food or conversation—at least in Zippy's most humble opinion. Regardless, it'll be nice to have this venue back up, open, and giving the music-loving, food-consuming, hang-out-digging public another option on The Strip.

Buy, Buy, Buy

This week, now that I'm back from my extended illness, it's worth noting a couple of discs out there from the locals.

Picks and Lighters—for those of you into that sort of thing—has released their fourth LP tva/starvation, from Living Room Recordings. The guys are very eager to "make their money back" on this record, so please, as your kind deed this month, go out and buy one right away.

Steck, Jaw, Gram Slam, and Ian, more commonly known as punk rockers The Malignmen, have released their long-awaited debut full-length, named in a moment of inspired genius The Filthy Malignmen. Perhaps the best band in Knoxville history with a drummer loosely named after a Denny's breakfast, these bruised and bloodied boys have waited quite some time for the release of their first album. Eighteen months, two record labels, and three pressing plants after its initial conception, The Filthy Malignmen is finally ready for consumption. Rock on.

Also, little bit emo, little bit rock 'n' rollers subbluecollar have released Daydreams, a disc that has migrated to my home CD player and will be reviewed at a later date, barring another round of heavy-duty antibiotics.

Winners

Spindale, N.C.'s WNCW, located on the Knoxville dial at 96.7 FM, has a whole bunch of Gavin editors in love with it. On Feb. 20, WNCW was awarded top honors in the Americana format, with wins in the "Station of the Year" and "Programmer of the Year" categories. It's a pretty notable award, given that Gavin is the magazine for the radio industry and station programming. This is program director Mark Keefe's first win, and WNCW beat out 80 other participating Americana stations. Not too shabby for this little station in the hills...

Quit Yer Whinin'

If I've heard it once, I've heard it a thousand times: There's nothing to do. Which is crap, really. There's plenty to do—you just have to look for it a little bit. So here's some suggestions, culled from the pages of our very own calendar, which is what you should look through if you need any further information.

Thursday: The Singer/Songwriter Showdown at Bird's Eye View. Louise Mosrie, Casey Jones, Jodi Manross, NonChalant, and Chris Brown will be just singing their respective little hearts out for a shot at some spiffy prizes, like a guitar and studio time. You can either cheer on your favorites or sit stonily and glare at your non-faves.

Friday: Leroy Troy at the Laurel Theatre. He doesn't just play his banjo, he also tells stories in the style of the Grand Old Opry's Uncle Dave Macon. It's a little something different, but perfect if you're in a gentle, quiet, yet humorous mood.

Saturday: Bob Egan at The Tomato Head. When artists go solo, sometimes you realize that they were much better off being hidden behind the rest of the band. No so with Egan, formerly of Freakwater and Wilco. His pedal steel guitar is both raw and delicate, his vocals both twang and rock.

Sunday: Malcolm Dalglish at First Presbyterian Church. Allegedly, Dalglish first heard the hammer dulcimer, the instrument that Billboard has called him a master of, in Knoxville over 20 years ago. He's bringing that magic back with his composition "Hymnody of Earth," which will also feature the Community School of the Arts and the First Presbyterian Church Choirs.

Monday: Stabbing Westward and Placebo with Flick at Moose's Music Hall. Stabbing Westward doesn't do much for me but Placebo is my new favorite English glam rock trio—think Slade meets Bowie with some very pretty boys, hypnotic rhythms, and a '90s make-over.

Tuesday: Caution at Great Southern Brewing. Yeah, they play in town quite a bit, but Grateful Dead covers with a smattering of originals make any weekday a little brighter.

Wednesday: The Shyness Clinic at The Tomato Head. No, it's not an encounter group for wallflowers but a Karate-like indie rock group.

—Zippy "Filthy Zippy" McDuff

—Zippy "Whitesnake Rulezz!" McDuff