V24|NO05
Do Not Pass Go
Turns out, there are rules to the bar business Advice time from Matt Stone: When owning and operating a bar and/or business, remember to check all your paperwork very closely, cross the Ts and dot the lowercase Js because, if you don’t, you might end up in a tad bit of trouble. The biggest story about Augusta nightlife this past week was the owners of Surreal at Surrey getting thrown in the pokey. It turns out that the guys didn’t have their state alcohol license, so last Friday night the party was shut down early when undercover agents made a surprise visit. There are a bunch of rumors going around about what exactly happened at Surreal, but I’ll wait for an official statement to come out before I put my comical spin on it. According to their Facebook page, though, “We will be open this weekend. Just a little hiccup, nothing like all the stories we’ve been reading. But we LOVE the attention. Lol.” They also posted that they will be throwing a Jailbreak Bash this Friday night, so that sounds fun. There are a couple things that I can report about Surreal. First, the guys that own the place couldn’t be any nicer people. Jason, Matty and Clint have always been super cool to me. Secondly, the place looks amazing. I was there on Friday night and was blown away by the work they have put in to turning Surreal into one of the classiest looking places in Augusta. Unfortunately I was not there when the cops showed up on Friday night, but it’s probably a good thing. I’m afraid of jail. On the bright side, all three of the guys own other bars as well. So just in case Surreal isn’t open this weekend, check out Surrey Tavern or Bar West; both are two of my favorite drinking holes. It’s Friday, Friday, gotta get done on Friday, First Friday that is. I was looking around for some cool stuff to check out for the first Friday of February, but there wasn’t too much I could find. I did see that it’s ‘80s night over at Sky City. Coco will be playing the best of the ‘80s; it’s up to you if you want to dress as your favorite member of Oingo Boingo or not. Ladies are free and the guys pay only $5. Sometimes you have to pay for it guys, if you know what I mean. There is no doubt that if you walk along Broad Street on any First Friday you will be able to find something to do. Believe it or not Evans, you can walk Broad Street and not die. Don’t know if you’ve heard about this one, but Chevy’s Nite Club is back. Formerly known as Midtown Lounge, formerly better known as Cadillac’s, Chevy’s is making its return to the CSRA. The grand opening is Friday night featuring the band Fantasy. I haven’t been to that location since it was Cadillac’s and I was dancing with someone who looked like my grandma. I hear they are bringing in a new vibe and excitement to the La Pavilion location, so be sure to stop by and welcome them back. I have a couple new albums to talk about in this week’s segment of “Listen to this… What the hell is that.” “Listen to this” goes to a new band called The Neighbourhood. The California natives are tapped as one of the bands to watch in 2013. Check out the song “Sweater Weather;” it’s good and time appropriate. “What the hell is that” goes to Lisa Loeb. Yep, that Lisa Loeb. She keeps asking me to “Stay” when all of us have been gone since 1995. I may be late to the party on this one, but you should also check out a band called Grizzly Bear. Holy moly, this band is awesome. Again, I may not be as cool to all the hipsters that already knew the band, but at least I’m willing to admit it when I look stupid. What bands are coming to town? Who do you want to see in Augusta? Has anyone seen Rebecca Black? And bands, it’s called free advertising. Email me at matt@themetrospirit.com and I’ll talk about your band.
42 METROSPIRITAUGUSTA’S INDEPENDENT VOICE SINCE 1989
31JANUARY2013