Author: Jason Shrum

ALBUM REVIEWSFEATURED

Parker Barrow | Hold The Mash | Album Review

When you listen to the album, it seems timeless in the sense that you could drop this compilation in any decade, post the mid-60’s, and it would be identifiable as being made in that timeframe.  This construction of their art is well thought out, well place and certainly orchestrated with meticulous care. The fact that Parker Barrow’s sophomore record and the Rolling Stones 25th studio release came out within a week of each other is quite a cool coincidence.  It bookmarks a place in musical history, yet it also says that the future has been listening and that the music never dies;it just takes on new shapes with fresh voices. Megan is that vocal prominence that tears into these tracks with a vibrance and a soul sound that is never mundane.  She never sings in an idle space. Megan’s range matches the components of her bandmates’ abilities, and that is to say it is all endless. The twin lead guitars of Tipton and Bender jangle and twang with idyllic riffs and Safka’s electric ivories dance alongside, as all the cosmic tones race in the ethos of these recordings. Turner’s powerful pacing from behind the kit looms large with Priber’s bass and that uproarious thundering echo of life maintains an arc of toe-tapping joy.

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Pavement Rocks 26 Song Set at The Ryman

The show was beyond phenomenal with Pavement playing for nearly two hours on Monday, July 27th.  School night Schmool night. They orchestrated 26 songs (including the encore) and sounded incredible.  The Ryman is a fantastic venue known to locals as “The Mother Church” (it is in fact an old church) with a glorious sound built into its walls. You couldn’t recreate the sonic tonality or the ambience of its foundation today if you tried.  Everyone was up out of their pew row seating and on their feet the entire time, singing the words and shouting the hooks where they were needed.  Fifty-two-year-old me kept thinking back to my teenage self and wondering if he would have appreciated this as much as I do now. 

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Meghan Pulles: New Single and New Record

 I can honestly say that Pulles has left everything on the table and has come at us with a record from a deeply emotional place and ‘The Midhaven’ is just a sample of her putting her vulnerability on display so that the world may not only empathize together but also begin to heal through human connection. When the single drops,there will also be a gorgeously shot, black and white video, to accompany it. This is the first time that Pulles has released a video and a single on the same day. Meghan’s voice floats in the atmosphere and invites you to take part in the feast of her magical lyrics. Her words are a sonnet filled with staggering imagery that invokes heartfelt sentiment.

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Album Review: “Time Will Tell” by Devon Gilfillian

This is Devon’s third studio project, and it is called Time Will Tell and it pulls from all the various sounds that he grew up with in Philadelphia. The album is a landslide of rock, country, funk & soul that comes from his youth and listening to those classic tones that played throughout his home. Upon doing a deep dive into the artists’ background, his hero was Jimi Hendrix, who spent some time in Nashville (as he was stationed at the Army base in Clarksville) grooving with a lot of those legendary blues musicians at clubs downtown.  That’s what was inspiring Devon in high school, and eventually he picked up his gear and headed to Music City. 

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B SidesFEATURED

Hot Ticket Set to Open in East Nashville 

Programs involving painting, writing, sculpting, sewing, and other art-minded gatherings could be offered in time.  This is for people to get off their screens and get involved with their neighbors. Bond made sure to let me know that one policy would be “no phones on the dance floor”.  Hot Ticket will be about staying present and living in the moment. Bond regaled about her time as amusician, “I remember when people danced at our shows.  Nobody dances at shows anymore.  If someone starts dancing now, people are like ‘what are you doing?’” As an artist, a fan and a patron of other spots around Nashville, Bond leans into shifting the paradigm. She went on to add, “We all feed off each other’s energy and being in a smaller and more intimate space for that is vital”.  LGTBQ+ events will also be a focal point for Bond and McCoy.  There are promises of Queer Dance Parties and Drag Brunches among those festivities. 

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FEATUREDLIVE REVIEWS

Nashville’s Punk Scene Shows Up

Snooper ripped their opening set starting at around 7:45pm and had there been doors; they would’ve been blown off.   Snooper’s latest album, Worldwide, came out in October, and I am happy to say that I picked up a copy on cassette tape during the show. I was right up front for the festivities and the mosh pits.  With my camera in hand, I braved the sea of bodies swarming to the sensational music created by the band that was formed by the duo of vocalist Blair Tramel and guitarist Connor Cummins. The band is now rounded out by bassist Happy Haugen and drummer Conner Sullivan.  People filled the lot and found spots to watch from every possible angle.  It was an all-ages show and I am always so happy to see moms and dads bringing their children to enjoy in the solace of live music. Everyone was having an awesome time and treating each other with kindness. 

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ALBUM REVIEWSFEATUREDMUSIC NEWS

Mr. Dinkles’ Insightful EP is Out Now

So, in their messaging you will definitely feel that presence of the punk rebellion. As it was with The Sex Pistols, Black Flag and so many more, Mr. Dinkles keeps this format of not backing down and challenging the norm. Punk is not dead. This is exemplified in “Letter to Elon”, which I have written about in a past article. It speaks on his hypocrisy of not being American yet hating immigrants and spending on rockets when we could use the aid domestically or at least Earthly. It is served up nicely alongside a bed of “Socialism Ditty” that screams about sharing the wealth. “Socialism Ditty is about billionaires taking everyone’s money,” says Rettig. There is humor in the ask but also a furious frustration that looms large.

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