Matt & Kim, Cool Kids, Holly Golightly and more

Dew the right thing
Last Wednesday, The Spin learned the secret to a sold-out show at Exit/In: Get two hot college-radio buzz bands, get them a corporate sponsor—say, Mountain Dew—so you can charge only $5, and put the word out on campus.

We made a valiant (for us) effort to catch local openers MEEMAW, but a guest list mix-up at the door, compounded by the long-ass line, made sure we spent their set drinking across the street. We did finally make it inside in time to grab a beer and catch Brooklyn's Matt & Kim, who themselves had arrived only moments earlier due to a late flight. Armed with only a drum set and a pair of synths, the boy/girl duo regaled us with their recent airplane horror stories and interludes of popular gangsta rap hits between hyperactive indie pop tunes sung over a punk-rock beat.

We can honestly say we've never seen anyone who seemed so ecstatic to be playing the drums as Kim Schifino, who was grinning ear to ear the entire set. Obviously surprised at the sold-out crowd, the band narc'd on a few friends back home who told the band not to go to Nashville, warning they wouldn't be welcomed. Presented by WMTS and sponsored by Mountain Dew's new singles label Green—on which both bands have recently released songs—there was plenty of promo swag to go around. The Spin scored itself a few green Sharpies sporting both the bands' logos and a sticker.

Next up, Chicago's The Cool Kids sprang onto the stage, not only obviously surprised by the sheer bulk of the crowd but also by just how well we knew their material. Arms waved and roofs were raised as the two laid out fave after fave of their postmodern '80s-inspired hip-hop. The show halted mid-set for an impromptu dance-off among three audience members.

As if Nashville hadn't already made an impression on them by this point, The Cool Kids were completely unprepared for the crowd's intimidating demand for an encore. It took a couple of minutes for the band to reassemble their gear, but the two kept the party bouncing full-force for a few more tracks before calling it a night. If this show doesn't make them want to come see us again, surely nothing will.

Six pedals of admittance
Things got underway at The End Wednesday night with Sammy Stewart and his band who—looking like they came straight from a gaming convention—subjected us to their schizophrenic musical identity crisis, which struggled to traverse territory as wide-ranging as Tom Waits—who only certain people should use as an influence—and Daniel Johnston, with a little bit of a '90s granola vibe thrown into the works. Overall, the set, while unfocused, wasn't without potential, and this is obviously a band that is still finding its footing. Their set-closing cover of The Breeders' "Do You Love Me Now?" was a good redeemer.

The Americana-chic crowd of fedora-ed scarf-rockers had grown to about 60 strong when time came for The Spin's obligatory Caitlin Rose set for the week. Appearing sans Hammertorch but with fellow troubadour Tristen, Rose once again captivated the usually uncaptivate-able Nashville audience with a set whose tender moments were pin-drop quiet and whose more lighthearted notes were met with warm levity. Her penchant for affable stage banter was particularly 'tude-eriffic on this night. Her cracks at Alison Krauss, college and bloggers all killed.

Not to be upstaged, touring headliners Holly Golightly and the Brokeoffs featured guitarist/back-up vocalist Lawyer Dave, who has come up with an ingenious six-pedal drum kit that he plays entirely his feet while simultaneously shaming any other slide guitar player in the room with his otherwordly chops. To call him a hyper-coordinated over-achieving multi-tasker would be an understatement. We were blown away, as was everyone else in the audience.

Also in tow was a third member who played both the harmonica and the spoons. Their juke-joint Leadbelly-inspired roots 'n' roll boogie laid the perfect foundation for Golightly's deadpan sexy croon, which wholly haunted her dark tales of star-crossed love, domestic violence, walking with the devil, hell, suicide, murder-suicide, porn and—for variety—a children's song about escalators. Well done.

Handlebar stash
We at the Spin are always on the lookout for a flashy new set of wheels, so on Saturday afternoon we decided to drop by vintage bike shop Halcyon's grand opening in the 12South district. We knew we'd found the right spot when we encountered a ragtag pack of hipsters speeding around on sharp-looking restored bikes. Elise Tyler, one of the co-proprietors of Halcyon, member of the Tyler Family Band and baby sister of Silver Jews/Lambchop/Cortney Tidwell guitarist William Tyler, provided a lovely spread of cupcakes, cider and chili as folks milled about her quaint shop scoping out the wares. While we missed Weiners, we caught most of the post-punkish, somewhat droney quartet Diarama. Their youthful, co-ed energy was charming, but the cold got to us quickly. After drifting in and out of the shop as The Mattoid began to set up and perusing Halcyon's small record selection—mostly Infinity Cat releases—we opted to head somewhere with some serious central heat and a healthy supply of booze, so we snagged two more cupcakes and cut out.