Wednesday, June 24, 2026
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MUSIC NEWS

B SidesFEATUREDMUSIC NEWS
Jason Shrum

There is an Assassinate Attempt Being Made on Public Media 

Several years ago, in Seattle I discovered Independent Radio (and yes, I am capitalizing because it’s important), funded by the listeners, and it changed my life for the better.  That radio station was KEXP and it became my everything.  DJs can play whatever they want, any theme, without algorithms or pay-to-play formats.  They are both educational and spin a heavy rotation of local music as well as classic indie gems. I had never heard anything like it before.  You might catch Public Enemy, followed by Joni Mitchell and then some small independent artist follows that track. Each radio host did their own thing as well.  John Richards was the host that I first caught onto, and his music knowledge floored me.  I like to think of myself as having a refined palate of sound logged in my craw, but this dude buried my grasp of music, and I learned so much from him.  I am forever indebted.  I got to meet him once and as I trembled terribly inside, I think I played it cool. 

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FEATUREDINTERVIEWSMUSIC NEWS
Cretin

RIP Mike Peters – Love, Hope, Strength Defined 

I slipped “68 Guns” onto the turntable, and my musical life changed forever. The song is filled with slick guitars and powerful rhythms, but the key was this long-haired Welshman belting out the killer vocals.  Mike Peters was it!  Raw, passionate vocals that made the listener take notice, and the lyrics were great.  I remember that moment in the dingy WUVT studio, and the power of that music as if it happened yesterday.  Mike Peters and The Alarm helped me slip into this new Modern Rock / New Wave world where I soon dug into their peers: REM, The Cure, Pretenders, etc…  I stuck with the DJ gig, and it made me a bunch of money, and directly led to me meeting my wife. 

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FEATUREDMUSIC NEWS
Jason Shrum

Free Gaga! Yes Please

Lady Gaga isn’t going anywhere and nor should she. In fact, she may be doing her best work most recently. I have seen Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta AKA Lady Gaga in concert twice and she is nothing short of stunning. It wasn’t until I first saw her in Orlando, Florida years ago that I realized what an amazing singer and talented musician she was. I knew she was an artist. I knew she was a performer. I knew she had an act. However she has all the depth to back than up and she is showing that side more and more. Her new album, Mayhem, is a prime example of that. If you haven’t heard it yet, you are doing yourself a major disservice. Another toss-away descriptor, but I am lacking otherwise- it is brilliant. Her seventh studio album is what the kids would consider to be a banger. It is a maximum effort of all things Gaga, if that is at all possible. To date, however, I feel, its is her best work. You can hear all the knowledge that she has absorbed over the years poured into this record.

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ALBUM REVIEWSFEATUREDINTERVIEWSMUSIC NEWS
Jason Shrum

Sweet Mylo Just Got Sweeter

Sweet Mylo was a band I bumped into as I was just starting to check out the local Nashville music scene.  I went to see my friend Ian Brice of Loose Bolts play in East Nash and this is where I met the duo.  Sweet Mylo is an indie-pop band formed by husband-and-wife Kevin Jones and Grace Melody Jones.  I was mesmerized by the group from beginning to end. This week they will be releasing a new album (officially their first, as I would learn).  The band will also be playing a live show at the Historic Stonewall to promote the project.  Historic Stonewall, in the heart of Gallatin, Tennessee’s downtown district, has been standing iconically since 1831. This architectural wonderment has been a silent spectator to the evolution of the community around it for almost 200 years and serves as an event space and music venue.  Almost one year ago to the day I got to ask the band about their formation, their process and the future of Sweet Mylo.  Enjoy! 

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FEATUREDLIVE REVIEWSMUSIC NEWS
Larry Fulford

Michael Shannon, Jason Narducy & Friends Channel R.E.M. (and Literal R.E.M.) in Athens, Georgia

I fell in love with Athens during my first visit in 1999 or so. Sure, it was initially fueled by the fact that I’m a huge R.E.M. fan and, as such, Athens is basically Mecca, but it quickly became more than that. Athens is an anomaly in the south: a quaint, college town with a rich history of art and music, surrounded by sprawling farmland, isolating it from neighboring Atlanta, making it a funny little island, where, for decades now, weirdos get to be weirdos, experimenting with sounds, words and visuals, free of judgement and expectations. Leaving Athens always stings a little, in that I find myself wishing I could spend more time there, or had lived there in my 20s.

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B SidesFEATUREDMUSIC NEWS
Jason Shrum

Record Store Day Returns in 2025

EXCLUSIVES: These titles are physically released only at indie record stores. 
RSD FIRST: These titles are found first at indie record stores but may be released to other retailers or webstores at some point in the future. 
SMALL RUN/REGIONAL TITLES: These titles are either regionally based and sold at specific stores, or are press runs under 1000, which means they may be much more difficult to find at record stores around the country. 

Many of these RSD titles are in “limited” variety, so that usually means waking up early to secure your place in line. I usually tend to get up around 6am to be in line be 7am depending on the store and their hours.  I strongly encourage contacting your local record store, or visiting their social media page or website, to see if they offer any guidance on how the queue will be operated. Most stores opt for a “first come, first served” basis and only allow a few people in the building at a time to cut down on the wildness of 1980’s Black Friday’s mayhem style.

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