In northern Georgia, about 70 miles from Atlanta, lies the city of Athens.

Athens is not unlike State College. It's a college town, home to the University of Georgia, and it loves football.

But what makes Athens different from State College -- different from most cities of its size, actually -- is its legendary music scene.

The Whigs, an Athens-based band that is proud of its heritage, will open tonight for Jason Isbell at Lulu's Nightspot, 129 S. Pugh St.

"There is an amazing amount of good bands, from the past and still today," Julian Dorio, drummer for the Whigs, said.

"There's something like 400 bands in [Athens] right now, so people have a lot to choose from."

The Whigs, a rock trio that formed when the members met at UGA, are yet another of these bands, though simply being from Athens says little about how the band sounds.

"A lot of people associate Athens with college rock bands, because of R.E.M., and with psychedelic stuff, because of the Elephant 6 bands, like the Olivia Tremor Control," Dorio said.
"But there's also math rock bands and bluegrass and even some hip-hop."

Other famous bands from the city of Athens include the B-52's, Of Montreal, Neutral Milk Hotel and the Indigo Girls.

Whigs guitarist, keyboardist and singer Parker Gispert said a big reason Athens is such a draw for bands is its low cost of living.

"It's cheap," he said.

"Our rent is only like $275 a month, which makes it easy to send a check every month if you're on tour," he added.

Bassist Tim Beaux agreed with this sentiment.

He added that restaurants and bars are much cheaper in Athens as well, which makes going out and seeing a show more economically feasible for students.

In his opinion, though, the biggest reason for Athens' musical fortune is the competition.

"It's not a big city by any means, but it's amazingly rich in talent and culture," he said.

"You're just surrounded by incredible people. Any night of the week, you can go and see a great show," he added.

Though all three members of the Whigs expressed a general respect for fellow Athenians past and present, their favorite is the Glands, a now-defunct Athens band whom Dorio described as "kind of weird."

"They made two records and just sort of stopped," he said.

Gispert described them as "a fun rock band."

"They're really, really good songwriters," he said, adding that it was with this band that the Whigs identified most.

Dorio said with so many bands to choose from, it took a conscious effort to carve out a niche for the Whigs that would help them stand out.

"We didn't want to mimic any of those bands," he said. "It's a challenge to carve out your own sound."

Though the Whigs may have a unique sound, they also have many aspirations very much like those of any other band, Athenian or otherwise.

"We just want to make as many records as we can and play as many shows as we can," Dorio said.