One more for this decade: Best Shows of 2009

So why not post a top 10 list? Here ya go...my top 10 shows of 2009, in no order, all of them taking place in Murfreesboro or Nashville. Here's to the past year of amazing music and to 2010 being a year of a new scene, new tunes and new friends.  Hope you all have a great start to the new year and stay healthy, safe and happy!

-Jenny

1.       Jay Z at Vanderbilt: This was only my second time seeing hip hop live and the first time seeing such a big act in an arena setting. This one was only about a month ago, but it definitely was one of the best shows I’ve seen in years; I still stand behind the thought that everyone needs to see this man put on a show- he knows how to do it  (catch the original review of the show here).

2.       The Decemberists at the Ryman: I’d been saying for a while that the next venue the Decemberists needed to tackle in Nashville was the Ryman, and tackle it they did. Going into the show I wasn’t too sure what to expect from the “Hazards of Love” album being played the whole way through, but within a song or two, I was floored. Seeing the storyline performed by the band and extra characters of Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond) and Becky Stark, it was amazing. Seeing the whole album performed live literally brought it to life and made me want to return for more listens afterwards. Plus the final song made me cry, granted I have a tendency to cry at the drop of the hat, it was an experience.  

After the intermission the band returned to play what could be called a greatest hits set, complete with much banter about summoning the ghosts of the Ryman and the invitation to the masses to join the band onstage to sing the chorus of “Sons and Daughters”: “Let all the bombs fade away”. It was amazing, to say the least.  I’ll even go as far as to say it was better than the first time I saw the band a few years back at City Hall.

3.       Heypenny at Next Big Nashville, Mercy Lounge: I think if you read my review of the show, you can get the jist of how much this performance was one of my favorites.  I've talked quite a bit about it before, so I’ll spare a repeat. I do, also, stand by the statement that they are the best live Nashville band. So there.

4.       Lucero at Next Big Nashville, Cannery Ballroom: I know it’s probably not fair to split up NBN shows, but specific ones just stood out, so here’s the second of NBN that I loved, Lucero. I’ve been waiting to see the band play, having missed their live show 3 or 4 times I was pumped to see them finally. Of course, they didn’t disappoint. They played for 3 hours and didn’t let on any sense of being tired. Just read the review for a full rundown of the awesomeness here.

5.       Glossary, HP Witchcraft, Henry Daggs & Soul Mama at Temptation Club, Murfreesboro: Ok, so I may be a little biased seeing as this was my going away party a few weeks back and I did happen to book the bands, but it was an amazing show and everyone who played made this girl so very happy. Besides that, how many people can say they have seen Glossary and HP Witchcraft  at Temptaiton Club? Yeah, not many besides the 80 or so people who showed up. If you don’t know who these folks are, don’t worry: you eventually will.

6.       The Only Sons, And the Money Notes, The Orange Opera & Lauderdale, The Boro Bar & Grill: I admittedly only went to this show to see the Only Sons play (aka Ribbonpigeon), plus it was something to do on a week night, if I recall correctly, yet the line up wound up being one of the best ones I’ve seen in Murfreesboro all of this year (scene politics aside, it’s easy to say the town is in somewhat of a music scene-lull at the moment, with a few exceptions).  I hadn’t heard the other bands besides TOS, seeing as it was a really well put together tour of And the Moneynotes & Orange Opera (who seem to have played everywhere in this town with so many stickers everywhere). They all put on awesome sets and I don’t remember the hairy details, but I do know that their stuff was good enough everyone should check them out- and I’m still waiting for the Moneynotes to come back to town.

7.       Caitlin Rose, 1970’s Night at Nashville Cream’s 8 off 8^th, Mercy Lounge: The bloggers brag a little bit about their series of covers in the 2009 music wrap up issue of the Nashville Scene, which was what actually got me really thinking about this list (so props to you all), and I have to say that the 1970’s cover night was the best by far (fine, I only went to two of them, but the 70’s were just more sincere). The costumes were killer all around and the performance from Caitlin Rose was the best I have ever seen from her. Fleetwood Mac and Neil Young covers (the latter with her father) helped point out where her influences lie and how much she knows about music history. There's a video of the amazing performance Ms. Rose did with her father, so watch it here.

            Did I mention the girl played 3 songs and it made my top shows of the year? Yeah. It was that good.

8.       Kindercastle, Dent May and the Winter Sounds, Mercy Lounge: Going into this show, I thought Dent May was headlining. Well, he didn’t and it’s pretty nice I dug Kindercastle (RIP, amigos). Let me restate that: I’ve been into Dent May since I first heard about him and picked up his album not long after it’s release this summer. I was way excited to hear that he was going to be in town, let alone playing, arguably, my favorite venue in Nashville.

9.       Har Mar Superstar, Exit-In: I found out fairly last minute (about a week before the show) that Har Mar was going to be in Nashville again, and after the first show I was determined to get there. The first time around was at the same venue, not knowing exactly what I was in for. By the time the show was over and Har Mar was performing half his set off the show, I spent quite a bit of time near the back of the venue, farther away than the length of his mic cord (if you haven’t ever seen Har Mar Superstar, he disrobes throughout the set and hangs out in the crowd, making sure everyone is into the tunes, especially those who look bored). All in all, it just turns into a big dance party and, well, it’s kind of obvious those are my jam. You can check out the full review here and a few shots that I got at the show here. Let’s just say I’m counting down the days til Mr. HMSS comes back to town and I can dance again (Original review here).

10. Happy Birthday Amy and Cheer Up Charlie Daniels, Next Big Nashville, Foobar: This show was one of the best because of many different factors, along with the music. It was packed out with awesome friends I had made throughout the year in Nashville, along with being nice and cozy in Foobar's back room, plus I really wanted to see HBA play again and couldn't wait to check out Cheer Up Charlie Daniels. There were a few more bands playing that night, but given the night, only those two were mainly checked out, but I know a great time was had by all at this last minute venue addition to NBN (You can read the show review here).

Slight Slow Down...

If you haven't noticed, things have slowed down a little bit here at Conglomeration Fabrication.  Simply stated, life is happening and changes are happening (such as a move and other things coming up very soon), so the updates have slowed quite a bit. Keep an ear/eye out and there should be some stuff posted soon...especially about the first show that I've ever booked in Murfreesboro- details soon!

Thanks for reading-
Jenny

Show Review: Jay Z at Vanderbilt

It doesn't take a genius to see that I don't listen to a whole lot of hip hop, but I have picked up to listening o a little, particularly since finding out about the Jay Z show at Vanderbilt this past weekend.

My little brother had never been to a show before this one and I knew he'd kick me if he missed out, so I passed along word right before tickets went on sale and -next thing you know- we were sitting in expensive seats in Vanderbilt's Memorial Gym, second balcony, able to see the stage fairly well, yet unable to see most of the large video screens once the curtain dropped and Jay came through the floor.

But first things first: Wale opened for the show and I will admit, I freaked out when I read the Nashville Scene and saw he was playing before the main event. I'd only really heard of Wale through his work with Mark Ronson and I dug the stuff, so I was pumped. Evidentally Wale dropped his album, Attention Deficit that past Tuesday and even did a meet and greet in Antioch before the show, so it's easy to say people are into it what he's doing.

His set was a good one and by the last two songs or so, he even had the higher up sections moving around, hands in the air. My overall thoughts on the set revolve around one statement: I really hope he comes back to town and plays at a smaller venue, headlining. It would be a killer show.

Once Jay Z hit the stage, obviously, the crowd freaked out, to say the least. He puts on quite an awesome show, complete with lights, the aforementioned screens and all kinds of big show goodness (you'll have to excuse my getting excited over such things...I rarely attend large, arena sized shows). In some instances, I would have worried a little about one person running such a large show by themself, but this guy knows how to do it. He came complete with a full band, including horns, and plowed through most of his radio hits, along with some lesser known songs.

The coolest part, though, was getting to see my little brother experience his first show and see the excitement of hearing the songs he had been singing along to for a long time, in real life. I'm proud to say, yes, that was my brother in the first balcony that was singing along so loud to those songs you could hear him over Jay at moments. The whole experience reminded me why music is amazing live and why people do it- to elicit responses like my brother gave- I can't help but think he "gets" music more now. Thanks, Jay.

Overall, this was probably one of my top 2 shows of the year (perhaps a list will appear later on the blog). I highly suggest seeing Jay so you can get the triangle symbol out of your system, also so you can see how charming of a dude he is (the statements about the "pretty ladies" in the audience were in slight abundance, but in a totally adorable way).  This man knows what he's doing, he knows you want to know what he's doing and, well, it's worth the money to see what he's going to do next.

All Hallow's Weekend Shows

 

It's time to trick or treat...or check out some shows in costume, whichever you prefer.  Here's a few shows that I think are worthy of some checking out this weekend, even if you don't want to dress up for anything....

As for tonite (Friday), there's a pretty sweet show going on at the 5 Spot in E. Nash, for which you can see the flier above. It's the Heartbeater cd release show and I did happen to hear that Hammertorch is actually not on the bill, due to a scheduling conflict. However, the rest of the bill looks pretty good- especially those folks in Powerbrrrrrrrrrrd (emphasis on all the "r"s mine). It's only 5 bones and if you're around or looking for something good to do, I suggest you check it out.

Saturday, ie Halloween, brings a show that I've been looking forward to ever since I saw the line up a few months ago: you can catch Hammertorch if you're missing them from tonite's show, plus Cuttlefish and The Only Sons [aka Ribbonpigeon from a year or so back].

This is one of the best shows in Murfreesboro in a long time, so try to make it out to the Boro if you want to see some awesome sets.  I spent the last halloween at the Boro and am looking forward to just as much of a good time as last year; not bad for only $5.

If those bands aren't quite your speed, there's also shows going on in the Boro at the Temptation club with some of the noise bands in town and also the Hellbellies (who I've been told are a treat to see) and some other folks at Wallstreet, complete with the Kitty Kitty Bang Bang burlesque ladies hanging out, sharing info about their up and coming burlesque troop.

And if you're down for a short roadtrip, the Protomen are playing at the Pond in Franklin. I spent last hallow's eve seeing them, in full Protomen make up myself, and, well, if you know anything about them, they're always a party.

Whatever you choose to do and wherever you party, do be safe...you don't want to get a DUI wearing your fake blood covered costume, do you? I didn't think so...

Review: Heypenny "Cop Car" EP

Heypenny [Photo by Laura Dart, from their facebook]

 After all of my talk about Heypenny and their amazing live shows (such as their NBN performance), you might be wondering, what about their recorded stuff?
 Well, it's pretty good. I ran into a copy of their "Cop Car EP" at the NBN show and have since been listening to it quite a bit.  As for a run down on the EP, here it is track by track...

 The first 2 tracks, "Cop Car", followed by "Oh No", have the feel of a live show by the band; they have the funky, party vibe going on. On the track "Oh No", I'm somewhat reminded of Middle TN's own SELF, due to the xylophone and playfulness, yet it varies enough with the horns and fast paced "it'd be hard to kareoke to the verses" lyrics. Personally, I think the hard to decifer lyrics add to the almost non-sensical feel of the songs (did I mention they are in robot costume mode these days? Check out the video below for a visual...).

The third track, "Emperor's New Clothes" is a different story, however. The song is a slower one with no real danciness, but that's nothing to fault anyone about. Yet, between the Bowie-esque vocals and Elton John-esque piano, it is quite easy to pick out where Ben Elkins & crew possibly gather inspiration. The vocals during the verses of the song sound less natural, but when Elkins hits the chorus, it sounds more like the rest of their songs. I know it's only one song (and I have heard it live and had no issues), so I'd be very interested in hearing some more slower tracks on their forthcoming full length (you can catch updates from the band on their twitter to stay up to date).

 The final track is a demo version of "Cop Car", which I can only deduce is a trick to make sure teh song stays stuck in your head forever- it sounds pretty similar to the final version.

That being said, I do indeed love Heypenny. It's nice to finally have a hard copy of some of their tunes instead of sitting around, repeatedly listening to the myspace (seriously folks, you can't listen to this songs just once).  The EP is definitely a  good way to tide people over until the full length, yet I have a feeling people are counting down the days til the LP is all tidy and finished.

My advice is if you dig the band and their live show, pick up at a show (or order at their website) the EP. It even comes with a coloring book. Yes, a Heypenny themed coloring book.

And I will rephrase my blanket statement about how I feel about them, after sitting on the cd and also a live show:   This band is the best live show in Nashville right now and one of the most creative groups that I have ever had to the pleasure of listening to and seeing live.


Heypenny - "CopCar" from Paper Beats Rock on Vimeo.

An Interview with Dent May

[Note: I've been planning on starting including interviews on the blog for a while now, and since it's "take it serious, oh crap I'm graduating very soon" time with this stuff, I figured it's time to do it up right. So, I bring you the first of what will hopefully be quite a few interviews. Thanks for reading.]

Dent May [photo yanked from his myspace]

 Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele came through Nashville earlier this year and played one of my most anticipated shows in recent memory. Little did I know before I arrived at the show, the Mississippi native was not even going to headline that night, leaving that duty to another Nashville band that has since disbanded.  There were a handful of folks on hand, admittedly mainly girls, that were up front while the man & his uke played, singing along to the words, and the set seemed very short, more than likely due to the fact that his voice was starting to go out a bit.

Well, he's coming back to town and it's something that I hope more folks are interested in this time around. He'll become your favorite crooner with his charm and wit - check out what he had to say to some questions via email below, listen to some tunes, then try to deny it....

Conglomeration Fabrication: How did you get hooked up with the Paw Tracks folks to release your full length earlier this year?

 Dent May: I met the guys in Animal Collective, who run Paw Tracks, when they were recording their latest album in Mississippi.  We hit it off and kept in touch, and they ended up asking me to release music on their label.  It's kind of a boring story, really.  But I'm super honored to be on the label.  I've been a fan of Black Dice and Ariel Pink for a really long time, so being in their company is still crazy to me.  And touring with Animal Collective was so dreamy.
  
CF:You’ve been touring all over the place this year. What are some of your favorite places that you’ve gone so far?

DM: That's a really hard question.  We had a day off in Barcelona and were really blown away by what we experienced.  There's an energy to the people and the lifestyle there that is so exciting and inspiring.  We checked out all the Gaudi architecture and swam at the beach.  Other places we've fallen in love with include Berlin, San Francisco, the Czech Republic, and pretty much everywhere in France.

CF: You live in a small Mississippi town- is this where you grew up? How does this environment influence your songwriting?

DM: I grew up in Jackson, which is the biggest city in Mississippi, but now I live in Taylor.  Population there is about 300, so it's quite a bit smaller.  For one thing, I have a lot of space.  I live on 2 acres, and we have a big garage for music recording.  My roommates are also artists who played on my record but are too busy with their own stuff to tour with me.  Michael Bible is a writer and he started a literary magazine called Kitty Snacks.  Konrad Bevilaqua has a new project called Flight, which is amazing.  So it's kind of the best of both worlds, living in a super chill place where I have complete freedom, yet still being surrounded by lots of creative people.

CF: You wrote the song, “At the Academic Conference” about faking being an English major (and being not the greatest English major myself, I love it), do you have any suggested reading?

 DM: Oh, definitely.  I've also worked in bookstores on and off for a while now, so literature is super important to me.  As a Mississippian, I have to recommend Barry Hannah first.  Check out Ray and Airships.  He's kind of like a southern Beckett, and his language is beautiful but still a bit filthy.  Some of my other favorite writers are Donald Barthelme, James Tate, Amy Hempel, Charles Simic, Etgar Keret, and of course my hero Samuel Beckett.  Oh, and William Faulkner is pretty legit too.

CF: What’s the plan for the near future? More touring, writing and recording soon?
   
DM: I'm trying to take a break from touring, but it keeps piling up.  I'm going to Australia and New Zealand in January, and I can't wait.  I'm working on new stuff, which has a little more of an analog electronic feel.  A big influence is the ELO record Time, which a lot of people think sucks but doesn't.  It'll be similar songwriting, just with a more expanded musical palate.  There won't be much, if any, ukulele on the new stuff.  I wanted to come out with another record in 2010, but it's increasingly looking like it might be the following year.  I'm also about to record an EP with my country-western band Cowboy Maloney's Electric City.

-----

To Get an even better idea of what Dent's all about, this video for the song "Howard" speaks volumes...


Dent & his crew are hitting the End in Nashville this Monday (Oct. 26th), with Bows & Arrows opening, for only $6 at the door.

What to do in the Boro: SWAG party

So I don't know if  anyone's noticed, but this girl likes to dance (for a slight bit of  proof: here and here).

Well, there's a reason to do so this Friday night in Murfreesboro at 527 (and not a typical "drink or drown" rap music night)- the folks who put on Happy Valley dance parties in Nashville are getting a new monthly party going on, and from just looking at the flier, it looks like a good time.

This week it's Justin Kase & Coach running the show and I hope a good lot of you happen to make it out to this party and get it going the right way. Check back for a review of the event and the related going-ons on Saturday!