Recommended shows this weekend
June 24, 2011
Gotta keep it short and sweet today. Pretty slim pickin’s this weekend but here are a few shows around Nashy this weekend worth checking out:
FRIDAY:
Natalie Prass, Andrew Combs, Matt Campbell @ The 5 Spot. 9pm $5 21+ (I know, three first-name/last-names on a bill, but these are better than your average Nashville first-name/last-names.)
The Long Players performing The Rolling Stones album Sticky Fingers @ the Frist Center for the Visual Arts. 6-9pm. Check out the Frist website for prices. This is an especially cool event becuase it’s the opening for the Frist’s premier summer exhibit Warhol Live: Music and Dance in Andy Warhol’s Work. The Long Players will also have a special guest saxophonist- Bobby Keys, who played on the Stones’ tracks “Can You Hear Me Knockin'” and “Brown Sugar.”
SATURDAY:
Heypenny, PDA, Sleepy Vikings @ The Basement. 9pm 21+ $10
Alcohol Stuntband, The Black Faces, Satan’s Youth Ministers, and The Fastboys @ FooBar. (No idea about the price because their website is down/under construction.)
Have a great weekend!
New Bad Cop video from Seth Graves/Chrome Pony is good
June 20, 2011
My friend and former bandmate Seth Graves just keeps crankin’ out rad music videos. His latest is probably his best work to date, and it’s for local garage-punkers Bad Cop. This is a music video as it should be- its own work of art. (Make sure you watch in full HD!)
In other Nashville music news, I recommend checking out the two demos from a brand new band called Chrome Pony. All I know about them is that drummer extraordinaire Jerry Pentecost is involved (I’m assuming on drums, but he’s a talented dude and might play something else). These two songs are both quite infectious, and dare I say “Rock N Roll” is capable of being the anthem of the summer for Nashville indie rock. They’re playing a surprise last-minute house show this Wednesday at a new-ish house venue called The Parsonage with Diarrhea Planet, Big Surr, and ri¢hie. ri¢hie is a new project from Richie Kirkpatrick of Ghostfinger. Details can be found at the facebook event here.
Happy Monday.
Weekend shows/New Breakbot video
June 17, 2011
Here’s a quick rundown of good shows I recommend seeing this weekend in Nashville.
FRIDAY:
The Spits, TV Ghost, Cy Barkley, Diarrhea Planet, Hans Condor @ The End. 9pm $8.
Chubby & The Dots w/ Brown Chicken Brown Cow String Band @ The Basement. 9pm 21+ $5. I’ve no idea about the latter, but the C & the D’s feature members of the Non-Commissioned Officers playing the swingin’ sounds of the 30’s and 40’s.
SATURDAY:
White Denim w/ Ghostfinger and ??? @ The Basement. 9pm 21+ $8
Shoot the Mountain w/ Chrome Pony @ the 5 Spot. 9pm 21+ $5
KORT in-store performance @ Grimey’s. 5pm- FREE
Breakbot is a DJ/producer from France and is signed to Ed Banger Records. It should come as no surprise that I’m an avid fan, since his tracks or remixes have appeared in just about every mix I’ve made as DJ Burgers over the past couple years. His latest track “Fantasy ft. Ruckazoid” is an instant floor-filler and the video for it just hit the interwebs. Scope it out below. Dare I say it’s not quite as awesome as the one for last year’s jam “Baby I’m Yours,” but it’s entertaining and fits the song perfectly.
Have a great weekend!
Miami Horror tomorrow night at Mercy Lounge
June 15, 2011
Miami Horror at Beauty Bar Backyard, SXSW '11. Photo by Steve Cross
Tomorrow night (6/16) Miami Horror makes their first Nashville appearance at Mercy Lounge, with How I Became the Bomb and Cherub opening. I’ve been hoping for at least a year that Miami Horror would come through Nashville, and it’s finally happening. They come from the land down under, but I’ve heard rumors that they’re making a move to the states. Their debut album Illumination was one of my favorites of 2010, and I caught their live show at the Beauty Bar Backyard at SXSW this year. It was easily one of the best shows I saw the whole festival. They have impressive stage energy and showmanship which easily brought the crowd into a sweaty dance-frenzy in no time.
This show at Mercy will be easily as good, if not better, than the SXSW show because they can flesh out their set and do it “their way” instead of having to setup quickly and rush through their set like bands usually have to do at SXSW. The openers are perfect for the bill, and at a mere $12, this is a really good deal. The band is also doing a DJ set later that night at MAI for the official afterparty. Seriously, get your tix now! Why pay more at the door or risk missing it entirely because of a sellout?
Download:
Miami Horror-Holidays (ft. Alan Palomo)
Listen:
Miami Horror-Holidays (DCUP Remix)
Next Big Nashville becomes Soundland- my thoughts
June 7, 2011
If you’re a Nashvillian and even remotely connected to the music scene, you’ve probably heard by now that the annual Next Big Nashville festival/conference has changed their name to Soundland. Or at least Next Big Nashville Presents: Soundland. Click that link to visit their website, and you’ll notice that most everything still includes “Next Big Nashville” in the name, and the old logo is on the banner in the new logo. The event will become somewhat more focused on one area of the city- 8th Ave South. That means Mercy Lounge/Cannery/Third Man Records/The Basement/Grimey’s, but also 12th & Porter, MAI, Station Inn, Public Square Park, and others, with “fieldtrips” and artist-led workshops/seminars. There will also be a larger-than-ever outdoor main stage. All that and more can be found on the website’s FAQ.
All of what they’re doing sounds great- it’s exactly where the festival needs to go IMO. But I’m not sold on the name. Soundland sounds like a game to me. More specifically, a board game. I guess that’s because of Candyland. It just doesn’t sit right with me. Don’t get me wrong, I love this festival and city/music scene and will support them/work with them however I can. And I hope I’m wrong about the name… but I just can’t say “Yes, Soundland is a good name for this event” at this point in time. I look forward to the announcement of more details, especially the lineup. Make sure you follow them on twitter and Facebook for the latest updates.
Oh, and apparently Jay-Z is a fan of JEFF the Brotherhood.
As usual, I will be photographing this year at Bonnaroo for the Scene/Cream, so I will not be posting this Thur.-Sun. I may or may not have something worth blogging about tomorrow, so we’ll see. If not, I bid you adieu until next week.
Shows to see this weekend
June 3, 2011
Here’s a quick rundown of shows I recommend this weekend in Nashville:
FRIDAY:
Lambchop at Cheekwood Botanical Gardens. This is strange but awesome juxtaposition of outdoor fun, art, food, and music. The event starts at 5pm, but Lambchop plays at 9pm. For more info checkout Cheekwood’s website.
Quichenight, A Country Gentleman, Rock City Birdhouse @ the 5 Spot. 9pm $5
SATURDAY:
Times New Viking, D. Watusi, Big Surr @ The End. 9pm $10
… That’s about it for stuff that piques my interest.
I simply can’t go without posting this awesome video created by director Chris Abbas that combines a plethora of amazing imagery from the Cassini spacecraft (which has been orbiting Saturn for many years now) with the track “2 Ghosts I” from the album Ghosts I-IV by Nine Inch Nails. As the name of this blog implies, I’m obviously a huge fan of both music and science, and when they come together to create something beautiful like this I’m a happy man. If you can’t enjoy this there is something wrong with you. *HINT: If you’re viewing this post in an RSS reader, the Vimeo video below doesn’t show up, click through to actually view the blog page to see it!*
Have a great weekend!
What’s up this weekend?
May 27, 2011
My Moustache May photo from May 19. Believe me, I'm just as terrified of this as you are.
This weekend is pretty rad when it comes to show offerings in Nashville, as most are.
FRIDAY:
First at little self-promotion: Night of The Living Cover Bands Pt. II- Electric Boogaloo @ Walnut House in Murfreesboro. This a benefit for the Southern Girls Rock & Roll Camp, and I’m playing in a Weezer cover band for it. Rest of the cover bands: Guided By Voices (members of Those Darlins)/Fugazi (members of Gentlemen Divers & Apollo Up)/Sleater-Kinney (members of Take the Power Back & Heavy Cream)/Radiohead (members of Ascent of Everest & Protomen)/They Might Be Giants (members of Kelly Kerr & the Distractions)/The Replacements (members of HP Witchcraft & Skybox) Starts at 9pm!
Annual Moustache May Finale ft. Kindercastle and Roy Ira @ Mercy Lounge. 9pm $7 (As a proud participant of Moustache May, I wish I could go to this, but see: above.)
SATURDAY:
Third Man Records Fan Appreciation part 1: The Ettes, Dex Romweber Duo, Jacuzzi Boys, White Buffalo Woman, and The Turncoats. (No, not Linwood Regensuburg’s Turncoats, another Turncoats with whom I am not yet familiar.) @ Mercy Lounge. 9pm $12
Open Lot fundraiser @ The Zombie Shop, 506 6th Ave S. Ft. The Cherry Blossoms, Denny & the Jets, Natural Child, Plex Plex, and many more. For a full lineup and schedule check out Open Lot’s website. The Open Lot now has a new location downtown on Hermitage Ave. in the SoBro area, which is currently under quite a bit of “urban development.” This place is gonna start kicking some ass very soon, so keep an eye on it. *This event was originally slated to happen at Open Lot but has been moved due to construction at Open Lot.*
Holly Golightly & the Brokeoffs w/ Tristen and Reid Magette @ The End. 18+ $10 9pm.
SUNDAY:
Thrid Man Records Fan Appreciation part 2: Henry & June, PUJOL, The One Through Tens, D. Watusi, and The Grayces @ Mercy Lounge. 9pm $12
*Two-day passes to the Third Man shows can be obtained for $20.*
What’s up this weekend?
May 20, 2011
There is not shortage of good music to see this weekend in Nashville. Here’s what made a blip on my radar.
FRIDAY:
Social Distortion w/ Chuck Ragan and Sharks @ the Ryman. 8pm. $35
John Vanderslice w/ Damien Jurado @ the Basement. 9pm $12
SATURDAY:
Bad Cop, The Growlers, Majestico, Mom & Dad @ The End. 9pm $5 (Certain out-of-town media will be there filming, so… you know, it’ll be the place to be.)
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. w/ Generationals @ the Basement. 9pm $10
Mogwai w/ Errors @ Exit/In. 9pm $18 adv/$20 DoS
Another few things to note:
–Musician’s Corner in Centennial Park is off to a good start for its second year of existence.
-fEASTival is a new FREE food/music/art festival being held this Saturday the 21st in the 5 Points area of East Nashville. Check out their website for a list of yummy food vendors, beer vendors, and stage lineup which includes such notables as Majestico, Cheer Up Charlie Daniels, the Grayces, and Tiffany. Yes, THAT Tiffany… who a) apparently lives in Nashville now? b) recently starred alongside Debbie Gibson in Megan Python Vs. Gatoroid c) is now doing country music. Whoa.
Have a great weekend!
What’s going on this weekend
May 13, 2011
Jonathan Richman @ the 5 Spot in 2010/Photo by Steve Cross
FRIDAY:
Jonathan Richman (night 1 of 2) @ The 5 Spot. 9pm $12
Naked Without Us presents: Kink Ador, The Ettes, Hans Condor, Baby Daggers, and DJ Jane Dupree @ Mercy Lounge. 9pm $10
SATURDAY:
Jonathan Richman (night 2 of 2) @ The 5 Spot. 9pm $12
Naked Without Us presents: Vicious Guns, Hollywood Kills, Blacklist Royals, Details Details, and DJ Cornelainaire @ Mercy Lounge. 9pm $10
Across Tundras CD release show w/ Campaign, Red Forest Hunter, and Endamori. 8pm $5. (Across Tundras are some awesome dudes who play heavy-but-not-quite-metal-rock and have an organic farm in Goodlettsville. I recently took some photos of them at their farm for Sean Maloney’s article on them, which will be in either the June or July edition of Cowbell magazine, so look for that.)
SUNDAY:
Vintage motorcycle show at Drifter’s (1008 Woodland St., East Nashville) featuring free music from Heavy Cream, Turbo Fruits, Hans Condor, Useless Eaters, and Double Barrel. 12-8pm
Also worth mentioning, The Exit/In FINALLY FINALLY got themselves a snazzy new website. It was a good 5 years overdue, but better late than never.
Have a great weekend!
Yelp’s “Band of Boozers” this week
May 10, 2011
If you haven’t heard about The Daily Beast’s preposterous proclamation that Nashville is the nation’s most sober city, then you must be utterly disconnected from the internet, as it’s gotten a lot of local blog/media coverage. So much that Yelp, along with the Nashville Scene and many local alcohol-serving establishments have teamed up to dispel such a hideous myth. (BTW, I highly recommend their iPhone/Android app if you’re the type to “check-in” to local hotspots.) There are tons of bars with tons of drink specials all week long, but the main event called “Band of Boozers” is tonight, starting at the Yazoo taproom. Show up at Yazoo at 5pm, drink some of the finest local suds around, then join the 1/2 mile march (gotta burn off those beer calories!) to Mercy Lounge for even more drink deals and entertainment from BETA and the Neon Panthers, plus DJ sets by my pal Vitalic Noise and Wild Cub. I, along with Yelp and everyone actually involved with this, encourage passionate but responsible drinking. Let’s prove these Daily Beasts wrong! If you need more encrouragement, just watch this expert commercial filmed and produced by my pal Seth Graves:
steve cross loves music and science 