Believe it or not, my entire Nashville experience and agenda changed for the better the first time I saw a show at Third Man Records. It was Natural Child and The Strange Boys. I had never listened to either band, but really wanted to check out the TMR Live venue. Natural Child came on and I was hooked instantly. I'd never heard this type music before. The best comparison I can give you for these guys is a modern day Rolling Stones with a touch of Merle Haggard. Strange Boys had a similar sound, but it was still completely their own. They hail from Texas. Natural Child are Nashville natives. When I returned home, it was mandatory that I find some tunes from Natural Child because I enjoyed their set so much. This led to me discovering Infinity Cat Recordings, Burger Records and Turbo Time. Being a vinyl nerd, these sites made me happier than a pig in shit. (and that's pretty happy. ask any pig)
Then it began. I started discovering more and more new bands through these labels and others. JEFF the Brotherhood, Pujol, D. Watusi, Diarrhea Planet, Cy Barkley, Turbo Fruits and several others. All these bands had a very unique sound that truly captivated me. It was a blues/rebel rock/garage punk/alt country sound. Aside from having this "sound" in common, all these bands also had another notable thing in common. Yeah, you guessed it. They are all from Nashville. This led to, of course, more shows and more vinyl. To date, I have managed to catch live shows from almost every "Nashville Band" on my "must see" list and have came to this consensus: There's something fucking awesome happening in Nashville right now. I'm talking about the caliber of movement we saw when grunge was born in Seattle, The Mississippi blues era, etc.


Most recently, I attended "Freakin' Weekend" which totally lived up to it's name. I remember looking around at the crowd in the packed Exit/In on night two only to see Jack White and The Black Keys (all Nashvillians) just hanging out enjoying the show. Just a few more faces in the crowd. Folks who love music, just like the rest of us. I thought to myself, you know your'e at the right show when you have mega-star musicians in attendance. The entire weekend was simply amazing. My core group of friends and I spent a whole bunch of time with our jaws dropped. Every single band on the bill annihilated their set. There was no half-assed anything. This is what what you should expect from these Nashville bands. 100mph, balls to the wall, heart felt perfection. Plus a local, hospitable, friendly crowd that is just as enthusiastic as the bands they are there to support.
The Alabama Shakes, Michael Kiwanuka and Sam Doores in Jackson, MS
Media Set: Hanni El Khatib - Nashville 5/2013
Jordan Cook aka ReignWolf
Justin Robinson's Departure From The Carolina Chocolate Drops
NEW! SLIM PICKEN’S Langhorne Slim’s first album, Finally available in digital download
The Nashville Band Explosion