In Athens, gig-goers tend to ring in Halloween by watching their favorite bands pretend to be someone else. This year, however, Lenny Miller and Ella Sternberg offer something completely different at their Broad Street diner Preserve: an entire evening of righteous punk and metal acts from across the nation with sake cocktails on tap and hearty food on hand. They call it the Halloween Hop, and it’s the first and last gig that they’ll ever hold in their now two-year-old restaurant.
Preserve has never been the likeliest of venues for an amplified all-day party. Sitting at the tail end of a quiet residential street, the tiny diner has in its past been a hot dog stand, BBQ joint, and vegan café. Miller and Sternberg — two-thirds of local fuzz charmers Cancers — had thrown plenty of shows at their private home in the past, but never at Preserve. “We had talked about doing acoustic Sundays for a while when we opened,” says Miller in an email, “but decided our space to be too small. We also have a lot of awesome neighbors that we wouldn’t want to disturb all the time with the racket!”
But now, after two years of pleasing the Normaltown area, Miller and Sternberg have decided to shut Preserve’s doors on December 18th to prepare for their new baby. “[After the] late nights and long hours and the stress we both take on from dishwashers to tax brokers to now parents… we think we’ve done what we needed to do here,” says Miller. “Which was let the town know we’re adventurous, ambitious, ‘foodies’ (I’m not sure if I like that term, but I guess that’s what we are), artists, freaks, and also musicians. And we’re very proud of what we did and are doing in our lives.”
Lenny Miller and Ella Sternberg of Cancers
The resulting line-up is a doozy, with eight hours of music sprawled across two stages. Miller and Sternberg went out of their way to book headliner Floor, the almighty purveyors of sludgy melodic metal from Miami who’ve nearly self-destructed twice since their inception in 1992. That alone should be reason enough to stick around, but the huge roster of smaller acts will keep everyone on their toes. There’ll be plenty of camaraderie from DIY-til-you-die gangs like Iron Chic and Canadian Rife, an inspired acoustic set from diehard pop-punk group Off With Their Heads, and cross-stitched emo from The Island of Misfit Toys. The local vanguard won’t disappoint, either. Opening act Outer Sea should launch the party to the stratosphere with their cosmic surf, and Eureka California will light the joint on fire with raw kinetic energy. And of course, Miller and Sternberg will hold down their turf with the indomitable, bubblegum grunge of Cancers.
On top of this unstoppable roster, Preserve will continue to crank out the handcrafted comfort food that Miller and Sternberg cherish so much. For the Hop, Miller promises a five dollar menu of vegan and vegetarian plates, special discounts on local beers and PBRs, and — yes, you heard me right the first time — sake cocktails.
In short, the Halloween Hop promises an experience far removed from the usual masquerades of the night — loads of music, real food, and all kinds of folks to jump and jive and mingle with. Not to mention, this could be the last time that such a gathering will happen at Preserve, according to Miller. “It’s going to be a day to celebrate our friendships with friends from all over the continent, including this town, our block, and our community,” he said. “We will be doing Halloween Hop next year, but not at 1660 W Broad Street.”
Halloween Hop will take place on Monday, October 31 at Preserve. Doors open at 1 p.m. Tickets are $15 and wristbands that grant $1 beers and access to off-site after parties are $5.