Get ready for Widespread Panic. The Athens, Ga., rockers, known to fans as “one of the best live jam bands in the land” will be making their only Ohio appearance at 7:30 p.m. on April 13 at Mershon Auditorium.Having recently wrapped up work for their seventh album on Capricorn Records at John Keane’s Studios in Athens, the band set out on their current tour. In August they are planning a tour in Europe, after a tentative late-July release of their next album, which is currently untitled.Their sound is an eclectic mix of rock and blues, with jazzy influences which is truly unique and refreshing every single show. Also, they never play the same set of songs on any given night. Since forming in 1986, Widespread Panic has been supplying the goods for their fans on a steady basis. In April of 1998 they paid $90,000 out of their own pockets to put on a free live show in the streets of Athens for the release of their double CD live collection, “Light Fuse Get Away.” The show was said to have been the biggest CD release party in history. Athens, home to the University of Georgia, has long been a fertile ground for musicians. Unlike some towns where bands play a lot of cover tunes, Athens, with Vic Chesnut, and R.E.M., etc., just seems to be a great place for talented musicians. “Athens just draws a lot of great song writers,” keyboardist John “Jo-Jo” Herman said.”Our whole thing is about dance … we’re a dance band,” Herman said. “We play mainly our own songs during shows, but sometimes we’ll throw in a cover song.” The band has built a relationship with their fans based on a mutual understanding of the shared goal of community. At any Panic show, you’ll find a diverse group with a common thread – their love for music. Not just any music, but dynamic, improvisational music which is constantly pushing the band and audience to new levels of appreciation.Herman described the band’s “crackling-with-energy” improvisational live jams within the songs during shows.”Sometimes we have no idea where we’re going … and then we try to come back.” Their shows are known to go on for two hours or more.The band allows taping at their shows and if you send a blank tape and a self-addressed, stamped envelope they will send you a free tape of the show. In a recent story on the Internet news site “livedaily.com,” Phil Walden Jr., head of Capricorn Records said, “giving away music has always been a concern of mine and will always be.” If we stopped doing it now, we would lose fans,” Walden said.The band was recently written up in The Wall Street Journal as part of a case study to illustrate how successful grass-roots marketing can be. They have never had a video played on MTV, or an album on the Billboard’s Top 200. Their success is solely based on their loyal fans. Herman said the band plans to keep playing “forever … until we drop.”