September 20th, 2007
As I was recuperating from all the NextBigNashville festivities and rounds of shows, shots, and not much sleep, just maxing and relaxing with the tv, BANG!!! Actually, American Bang blasting out on a Verizon commercial!! It was so cool hearing our very own homegrown Nashville rockers on a national tv spot, it just put a big smile on my face! Lots of big time great stuff is happening for them these days, they’ve recently upgraded their name to American Bang (formerly Bang Bang Bang, but since there are apparently quite a few bands using this moniker out and about–they’ve changed the name to avoid any potential legal wranglings), and have a new EP titled Move to the Music scheduled to drop October 23rd on Maverick/Reprise after being signed by Warner Brothers in 2006. The EP, as well as the full-length album they are currently finishing up, was produced by multi-platinum producer James Michael, who has worked with artists ranging from Motley Crue, the Scorpions, and Saliva to Alanis Morissette, Meat Loaf, the Exies, and Hillary Duff. The title cut is the tune featured on the Verizon ad–displayed oh so nicely on the new Motorola MOTO Q. The EP will be available at Best Buy, Walmart, your favorite local Indie record store (GRIMEY’S here in Nashville), and on iTunes (iTunes currently has Move to the Music listed as an EP for $2.99, with “Good as Gold”, “All Night Long”, and “American Ride”, but “Move to the Music” isn’t showing up yet). The band has been in LA (seems like more and more Nashville bands are in LA these days–instead of the way it was a few years back, when there was a mass exodus from LA to Nashville–remember the “last one to leave LA, turn the lights off” days?) recording a full-length album scheduled to be released in early 2008. They’re currently on tour opening for The Donnas (sweet!), and are also scheduled to play with Lynyrd Skynyrd on the “Simple Man Cruise” in mid-January.
The band consists of Jaren Johnston’s bluesy, ballsy vocals, Ben Brown’s blistering guitar, Kelby Ray’ stompin’, thrompin’ bass, and rounding out with Neil Mason’s pounding percussion. The four are high-school friends who developed a rabid following here in Nashville, recording and releasing their debut album I Shot the King themselves in 2005, and after packing the clubs to SRO crowds with fellow Nashville bands Be Your Own Pet, AutoVaughn, and The Pink Spiders, they went on in 2006 to open for Lynryd Skynyrd, .38 Special, and (you know I love them) the Black Crowes. This year, they played THE summer gig–Bonnaroo, as well as Lollapalooza and Summerfest, and did some dates with road warriors and blues-rock, Rock and Roll Hall of Famers–that little ol’ band from Texas, ZZ Top.
Be sure to either pick up the EP, or download it from iTunes, and for more on the band, and a full listing of their tour dates, check out their websites: myspace.com/bangrock or www.americanbangrock.com.
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
September 17th, 2007
You know I’m always for gigs for a good cause–and in Nashville they usually consist of some world-class talent and some very deserving organzation–well September 18th (Tuesday), there is a great show to raise money for Second Harvest Food Bank. The show features some of Nashville’s top tier writers–Craig Wiseman, Tony Mullins, Jeffrey Steele, Bob DiPiero, and surprise guests–and with these guys, you are probably in for some seriously cool surprises, as they know, and write for and with EVERYONE in town! Tickets are $35, and all of the proceeds benefit Second Harvest. The show starts at 7:30, and you can get tickets through the Ryman box office, www.ryman.com, local ticketmaster locations, www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling 615-255-9600.
Share This
By Suzzann -- 4 comments
September 13th, 2007
Boy, 3rd and Lindsley has been booking some exceptional talent lately, not that they are ever light in that department–but one of my personal faves is playing Friday, September 14th–the great Billy Joe Shaver. He was here just a few weeks ago, playing the Buds’n'Suds benefit (which was a mighty fine evening of music, and raised a lot of money for a very worthy cause), but this is a chance to see him up close and real personal. Shaver is one of the few real country legends left, and although he may not be as well known to those outside of Texas and Tennessee as some of his compadres–folks like Kristofferson, Nelson, and those that have gone on to greater glory–Cash, Jennings, and Van Zandt, make no mistake–this is the real deal. Willie Nelson once called Billy Joe the country’s number 1 living songwriter–which carries a pretty good bit of weight coming from Willie. In 1973, Waylon’s Honky Tonk Heroes album kicked Nashville’s country establishment right in the ass, and almost the entire album was Billy Joe Shaver tunes. When you have writers like Kristofferson and Tom T. Hall cutting your stuff, you know it has to be way past good. His personal life is the stuff of legend as well, such as marrying wife Brenda 3 times, and surviving an onstage heart attack (after quadruple bypass). There are damn few of these larger than life, blood, bare knuckles, and Jesus men left, and maybe even fewer great songwriters–here’s your chance to see one!
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
September 12th, 2007
The White Stripes have cancelled all remaining tour dates through the end of the year, including all fall U.K. dates. It’s been attributing to Meg’s suffering “from acute anxiety” and her resulting inability to travel. Nashville was lucky enough to have them play a show at the Mercy Lounge May 18th.
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
September 9th, 2007
Interpol will be playing the Ryman promoting their major-label debut Our Love To Admire on Saturday the 22nd of September, with Liars opening.
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
September 5th, 2007
Well, the Crowes definately put on another great show at the Ryman! No opening act–so it was straight to the deal, and the Robinson brothers and band started off strong, and stayed tight for the whole show. Chris was in fine vocal form, and the rest of the band sounded great as well. Rich sang a lot more, swapping lead with Chris a good bit (a by-product of the Brothers of a Feather tour, no doubt). They lead off strong with “Remedy”, followed up by “Sting Me” and “Gone”. One of the highlights of the show was the soul-drenched rendition of “Seeing Things”. I’m always amazed at the power and depth of Chris’s voice–that great big voice coming from his skinny bod! This show featured a mellow, acoustic set in the middle, and I really dug it, as I think the Ryman is a great venue to showcase harmonies–the acoustics just naturally lend themselves to it. The band played “Sweet Mental Revenge” for the first time, and the acoustic set featured “She”, “Lost My Driving Wheel”, and “Girl from the North Country” before ramping back into classics “Thorn in My Pride”, “Jealous Again” and “Soul Singing”.
The band has finished recording 16 new tracks at Allaire Studios in Shoka, NY, and are set to start mixing them in September for a spring ‘08 release. The new studio album was produced by Paul Stacey and the Crowes, and features the addition of Adam MacDougall on keyboards, and Luther Dickinson from the North Mississippi Allstars also joined in on several tracks.
All in all, a tall time was had by everyone!!
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
August 23rd, 2007
Porter Hall Tennessee is playing the Five Spot tomorrow night–wOOt!! Last time I heard, they weren’t going to be back in town until November–and that was straight from Molly’s mouth via our mutual friend’s ear. I missed them the last time they were here, and Sweet Melissa called to see when my next chance would be–and they were playing Birmingham and Memphis that weekend, and didn’t have anything else in Nashvegas until November.
But when I was going through show dates last night, working on my picks to check out–there it was!! PHT is a punk band gone to whisky-bent, honky-tonk hell, and their music takes you right along with them!
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
August 21st, 2007
Here’s your chance to see a real live legend, the kind of bigger than life old-style honky tonk hero that’s just about extinct–Billy Joe Shaver is headlining the Buds’nSuds Kick Off Party tonight, which is a bebefit for the The Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America tonight at the Mercy Lounge. The show starts early–6:30–and for a mere $10 (but feel free to give more for a good cause!) you can see Billy Joe, Kylie Sackley, Lee Brice, Jerrod Neimann, and Randy Houser.
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
August 20th, 2007
I feel like I’ve been to outer space and back, although it was actually to the great Northwest for a couple of weeks. I was in Seattle for three days, then out on an Alaskan cruise, and then to Victoria, B.C. and on to Vancouver. It was gorgeous, and the weather was sooo lovely–highs in the 70s in Seattle, and 60s in Alaska as opposed to the triple digits Nashville has been experiencing. Of course, the day I got home, we hit 107 in Nashvegas–just hotter than blister!! And the only thing hotter than the thermometer is the music scene!!
I picked up several mags to read on the plane and in the airport on the way out, as we had a long travel day flying from Nashville to Dallas, a 3 hour layover, and then a long flight to Seattle, and who did I see in every single one? Ryan Adams for one (playing in Nashville at the War Memorial on October 23), Paramore for another–they are in pretty heavy video rotation these days, and their new CD Riot is blowing up.
I’ve spent the past couple of days getting my computer unkinked–as my modem got toasted while I was away, and for some reason it was a major production getting the new one hooked up (but thanks to Chris at Comcast, I am finally back online after multiple calls and some annoying technical troubles), and trying to catch up on everything going on around town. Interpol is coming to town, along with Spoon (love them!) at the Cannery, Hank III is playing the Cannery along with Rev. Horton Heat and Nashville Pussy (although I did know this before I left) in November, Drive-By Truckers, also at the Cannery. Alison Kraus & Union Station at the Sommet, and about a million great shows at the Exit/In, Mercy Lounge, Bluebird, Station Inn, and on and on.
One thing that was really cool on the trip was the fact that when anyone asked where I was from and I said Nashville–they all had questions for me about my hometown. And it made me more than a little homesick when we hit Alaska and heard country music everywhere!! Although I don’t always listen to country here at home on a daily basis, I did grow up with it, and do listen to it regularly (I just listen to a lot of other things along with it!), but when you’re 3000 miles away, and you hear songs coming out of the speakers that you are so familiar with on so many levels, it’s at once comforting and melancholy all at the same time.
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
August 19th, 2007
Breakout sensation Colbie Caillat is playing the Cannery Ballroom tomorrow night!! She is an incredibly talented young singer-songwriter whose debut Coco brings to mind the days when albums were crafted with each song contributing to the finished work–pieces which added together formed the whole picture. She grew up in Malibu surrounded by musicians, as her father Ken co-produced Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours masterwork and also their Tusk album, and later ran his own label. Her influences range from Lauryn Hill to Marvin Gaye, Fleetwood Mac and Steve Miller to Bob Marley, and she’s currently on tour with the Goo Goo Dolls. The show is at 9:00, and Tyler Hilton is also on the bill, cover is $15. I’m thinking that this album is going to go the same route as Norah Jones first album, and wind up with some Grammy nods, and that the next time we see this one coming through town–she’ll be playing the Ryman and tickets will be a lot more expensive, and harder to come by as well. This show should be well worth the cover, and braving the sweltering heat (and even going out on a Monday night)!
Share This
By Suzzann -- 0 comments
Recent Comments