I started going to shows by the time I was 12, although my parents, both of whom were in the music business, first took me to Exit/In when I was only a baby. Some of the best experiences of my life have been in local clubs. I’ll never forget seeing Of Montreal at Sebastian’s. The band, dressed in costumes ranging from animal masks to tuxedos, put on a surreal satire of a whodunit play, incorporating their lyrics to make up the plot. Nor will I forget Guided by Voices at 328 Performance Hall, where lead singer Robert Pollard got drunk (as usual) during the show and handed out beer to the crowd. I saw Modest Mouse in a packed room at Exit/In, and afterwards, witnessed my first street fight outside the club. Perhaps most memorable of all was Elliott Smith, also at 328. The electricity went out, so candles were lit and placed all around him on the stage, and Smith played an acoustic guitar. It was hard to not feel like it was just Elliott and me, sitting in his living room on a Thursday night.
Years ago, it wasn’t hard to sneak into clubs. Whether you knew someone at the infamous “back door,” showed up at the venue early for soundcheck (and hid there for the next few hours until the show started), or had a way to get on the guest list, it seemed that the ways to sneak out after your bedtime were numerous. Most of the time, the rebellion was rewarded with the chance to hear great art. (Though admittedly, the music seems to sound better when you’re under 18 at an over-18 club.)
But now, unfortunately, club owners have cracked down, and unless you whip out $50 or more for a fake I.D.—which still doesn’t guarantee illegal admission—chances are you won’t be hanging out at Springwater, 12th & Porter, or The End. Instead, Nashville’s kids are lucky enough to have two venues open for all ages: Indienet and NXT Generation Performance Hall.
Although neither club is spectacular, they both offer a venue for aspiring young musicians to perform, and for underage music lovers to have something to do on the weekends. It’s a brilliant scene each Friday night at Indienet or NXT Generation: A host of kids are always hanging out outside, sitting on the pavement, wearing their best thriftstore garb. Minivan-driving moms pull up periodically to drop off their preteens. If I watch closely, I can always spot a newcomer—a “show virgin.” They’re usually younger, probably wearing a Smashing Pumpkins shirt. I can always spot them standing near the stage, looking awkward, unsure whether to dance or not; but just like a first-time visitor to New York City, they simply can’t help but gaze up and look at all the sights and sounds with awe.
I love watching kids come to shows at Indienet or NXT Generation for the first time. I can see them wake up to the fact that art isn’t just paintings in cold museums, that the mall is not the only place to go on a Saturday night, and that they don’t have to fit in with all the popular kids to experience something great. It makes me think back to the first time I realized I wasn’t the only one listening to music all the time, that I wasn’t the only girl who lived off records and shows. I felt like I’d finally found my place; and to find your place during your high school years is one of the most comforting things a kid can do.
The great thing about the under-18 scene in Nashville is that it will never die. Every few years, there will be “the” band. “They are going to make it! They will be huge! And I’m going to say I knew them back when they were playing at In-die-net!” The venues change, true, but the high school scene is reincarnated again and again, reinventing itself with each new club (Lucy’s Record Shop turned into In-die-net, Rocketown was replaced by NXT Generation). The vibrancy and yearly rejuvenation of Nashville’s music scene, both under-18 and over, has buoyed my hopes that yeah, maybe The Features, Esposito, Silent Friction, or Lifeboy could be the next big thing. Llama have a record out; Franklin High favorite Davis just finished one as well. The energy each of these acts generates seems powerful enough to propel them to bigger things.
As I’ve mentioned, I have two parents in the music business, so when it comes to the chances of a band’s survival on the market, I’m a realist. The likelihood of any of these bands making it big is slim. But those odds don’t change the fact that the unique and precious part about the local scene for kids is that it’s just that: local. None of the underage performers is jaded yet; they’re fresh out of high school and ready to make something of themselves here and now. It isn’t about the money or the fame. It’s about the music.
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