Get tipsy off pumpkin beer? Check.
Watch Hocus Pocus and re-realize how awesome it is? Check.
Stress over the whole couples-costume thing? Check.

 

Create a totally badass Halloween playlist featuring some of my favorite local bands? CHECK.

Get in the spirit and give it a listen! -Caroline Bowman

Sometimes, it seems like EVERYTHING happens in ONE night. My Facebook is blowing up, show flyers are all over the place and with only a few hours to go, my decision-making anxiety is at an all-time high. It’s very possible that I’m not the only one, so here’s a basic breakdown of all the awesomeness that will be happening all over our fair city tonight:

The JAG Album Release Party
"Pondermental Wonderment In Hypocricity"
Palaver Thursday at FooBAR
9:00 pm
$5
w/ Bantam Foxes, The Mumzees and Uzi

The best of underground East Nashville are coming out to play. Prepare to get weird.

Tesla Rossa EP Release Show
"Heat Bath"
The Basement East
8:30 pm
$10
w/ The Beech Benders, Milktooth, Becca Mancari and Luella

The most eclectic bill of the night, with everything from indie to beach to folk rock. And you can ONLY get the EP at this show or one of their gigs on tour, so grab ’em while they last.

Miller Made Music Presents: The Gills
Exit/In
8:00 pm
$5
w/ Lauren Strange and Behold the Brave

Fancy yourself a heat-seeker? This lineup miiiight burn your eyebrows off.

Give the bands a listen, and choose wisely…                   -Caroline Bowman

 Zeke Duhon’s self titled debut EP on Big Deal Records (My Morning Jacket, Ray Lamontagne) is a brief portrait of a young man working to figure out his own truths and, by proxy, illuminating artistic mile markers a large number of people in this town can relate to. The preface (his and possibly yours): a young Okie heads east to Music City seeking the larger stage that Tulsa couldn’t offer.

                It’s a good time in music to be a singer-songwriter straddling the fence between indie and pop. The lines have blurred again between which is which, and the stalwarts of both are becoming cozy bed fellows (see Ryan Adams’ 1989). On this EP, Duhon is swinging for the fences. He is going for Vance Joy/Taylor Swift homerun hooks and choruses. And while he never quite gets there, you have to respect the effort of a 20-year-old swinging that size of a bat. What keeps the EP tethered to East Nashville and Duhon’s indie upbringing is the depth and closeness of his lyrics. He had some help from seasoned song crafting vets: Brett Dennen, Kevin Griffin and Matthew Perryman Jones all have writing credits on this EP.

                The strongest track on the record is a song written solely by Duhon. “Faith and Hope” has the stomp/clap catchiness to draw you in and the lyrical content to keep you intrigued. The song is a metaphorical invitation to grab a gun and pick a side. It is an invigorating political call to arms, but is veiled enough to cover whether Duhon is leaning left or right.

                Duhon is a singer-songwriter first. The acoustic guitar is not ever present, but is still the apparatus upon what each song is built. He is more David Gray then James Taylor, telling generational truths using modern tools. The EP has the Nashville polish on it, which might turn some indie purists away, those people might be read as bitter hipsters, but there are times during the album that you can’t but help catch yourself tapping along. The record works best when it is Duhon’s lone artist voice guiding the ship. Here’s to hoping he gets the chance to develop that voice even further.  -Alex Vucelich

New endeavors get lost as time blurs all lines, but some artists maintain their ground. Nashville minimalist musician, October Tooth, has remained forbearing in releasing each new iteration of the concept once a year, in October.

  Zach Schmidt looks like he sounds; jaw set tight even at rest and eyes that seem to have seen too much. He resembles a young Depression era prairie pastor.

Landing in Nashville two years ago, Schmidt came to town from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with his EP Horse, Truck or Train as a calling card. With the EP’s sparse production and lyrics which paint a picture that better days are coming, but sure as hell aren’t here, the Townes Van Zandt influences are noticeable. Train and Schmidt’s live performances have won over players in Nashville’s Americana scene as evidenced by the help provided to his upcoming full length: The Day We Lost The War (set to be released at the beginning of next year). Engineered, mixed and mastered by Justin Francis, with bass and steel provided by Santa’s Pub defacto house band rhythm section, Adam Kurtz and Carter Brallier. Aaron Lee Tasjan provided guitar for the album. 

Schmidt will be playing songs from both records when he opens for Tasjan’s record release show on October 25 at The Basement. You can also catch him tonight at the 5 Spot for "Cover Your Friends Night," also featuring Cale Tyson, Caroline Spence and others. -Alex Vucelich

Photo: Juan Solorzano and Brothers Design Co 

Dylan be damned; the soft cooing folk crooner, Caleb Groh, has abandoned the folksy roots sound he cut his teeth with for synth grooves. The singer-songwriter debuted his single, “Let It Groh,” off his forthcoming Hot Pop EP (October 30), and to say Groh’s foray into bedroom R&B is infectious would be a startling understatement. Groh layers irresistible synth melodies over purring Wurlitzer sounds, and carries the track with his dream state falsetto. A track with whispers of Phil Collins, Toto, and Phoenix, “Let It Groh” offers the perfect preview of his intrepid departure from indie-folk. -Sean McHugh

 East side indie folkers Waterfall Wash are helping us cling to the last bit of summer with a DIY lyric video for staff favorite "Foreign Chords," dropped earlier this year. Basically, two fruits enter; one frickin’ adorable video leaves.

The fun, quirky video, directed by Dylan White, has all the makings of a perfect afternoon. There’s Nerf gun double-crossing, hand-painted signs, cameos by friends (and some local talent) and a refreshing-beverage-off, all to a track you can’t help but smile to. Boasting xylophone AND lap steel, "Foreign Chords" is full of personality, positivity and solid musicianship. 

Check out the video below and hear Waterfall Wash’s recent episode of local tastemaker podcast Notable Nashville here! -Caroline Bowman

If you’re not losing your mind with anticipation for this Sunday’s show at The Basement East, you might want to check your pulse.

Tennessee Brew Works is putting on a FREE show with all your favorite TN psychedelic bands, and if we know these guys like we think we do, there will definitely be some craziness.

To kick off their Truth Tour and celebrate the upcoming release of their music video for "Shere Khan," CHALAXY have joined forces with psych/electro/rock bands Spaceface (including Jake Ingalls of The Flaming Lips,) Body of Light and New Wave Rebellion to melt our faces completely off.

We put together a little playlist to give you a taste of what the show has in store. Give it a listen, and we’ll see you there!

 What’s that? You love flannel, Doc Martens and cut-and-paste zines? And your heart has been yearning for a local female-fronted acid soft grunge band? Dude, us too, and we’ve found everything we wanted and more in pastel punk rockers Reality Something.

Keeping it raw, the Nashville three-piece puts their own spin on 90s rock with head-noddable rhythms, growling guitar and tender vocals.  And with a debut EP this strong, we can only imagine what’s next.

Check out the EP below, and catch Reality Something live 12.1 at ACME for No Country for New Nashville’s showcase.

 Honestly, we don’t know what’s going on with this band. They have a scarce online following. Their music is a big, loud collision of sludge rock and glam metal. They sing about ridiculous pop culture topics. And they’re awesome.

 So awesome, in fact, that we wouldn’t be surprised if Songs 2 Dance 2 end up with some kind of underground cult following, which we will gladly be a part of.

The Nashville-based 5-piece recently released a cassette with their latest single "Tinder (Swipe Right)," and a B-side "Daddy Issues." The lyrics are brash, and maybe a bit offensive, but we have a feeling Songs 2 Dance 2 know that.

Hear the single below, and see them live at their cassette release party 10.23 at fooBAR with Oli Endless and the Possibilities, Doctor Jungle Cat and Terrible. -Caroline Bowman

 Once a punk kid, always a punk kid. And in the case of Beer Head, we wouldn’t have it any other way.

The emocore garage rock duo recently released a 5-track EP just angsty enough to awaken our inner bangs-slinging teenager. "Wait it Out" embodies the pop punk we all know and love without sacrificing attention to musicianship and mindfulness of modern taste.

It’s loud. It’s personal. It’s something old with something new. And it deserves a listen. -Caroline Bowman

Maybe it’s because we’re totally landlocked, but Nashville is seriously lacking in surf rock (minus The Beech Benders. Those guys rule.)

Fortunately, Brett Rosenberg aka Quichenight is bringing the salty ocean breeze to our fair city and the sand to the crevices of our… hearts.

It’s becoming more and more rare to see a full album release. With our astoundingly short attention spans, I’m surprised you’ve even read this far. But Quichenight’s The Minor Sea is so intriguing and enigmatic and… just plain good, 14 tracks still leave us wanting more.  Starting off with sound of crashing waves and ending with the title track (Minor C, get it?) Quichenight shows plenty of self-awareness through the spring reverb and creepy organ solos. 

"Saturn’s Pig" would make the Wilson brothers proud, while "Life is Disgusting" and "Quackin’" will have you doing The Swim until you’re blue in the face. With cheeky lyricism and solid musicianship, Quichenight has taken the title from Taco Tuesday as our official favorite night of the week.

Give The Minor Sea a spin and pick it up on cassette and/or "the next obsolete format– that relic of the 80s and 90s, the CD!" -Caroline Bowman