The Spin
Some Pigg
We didn’t see LANDON PIGG play Sunday night at 3rd & Lindsley, but we saw him get hardcore ghermed. Pigg looks like an indie Ashton Kutcher—same pretty boy face, but with a lankier frame, shaggier hair and a quiet intelligence in lieu of bombastic idiocy. When we walked in he was surrounded by young, saucer-eyed girls, eager to enthuse, “Oh, My, God, you were so good!” And the packed house was girl-heavy for another reason, thanks to the presence of headliner GARRISON STARR. Starr, a recent Nashville transplant and another fan of the extraneous last-name consonant, is a commanding veteran. There’s a sense that she’s kind of made it, and on her own terms. Her set was rollicking and confident, and she can really sing—one reason she sounded so good when she shed her band for the mournful “No Man’s Land.” Starr had no shame about plugging her recently released record The Sound of You and Me. “Buy one,” she said. “Actually, buy two.” But it seemed the lanky boys and sparkle tank-topped girls were less interested in her earnestness and more into the high-school style parking lot hang developing outside the glass doors. There really is nothing like watching guys with emo ’dos fix their hair when they think no one’s looking.
It’s the latest wave
Have you been searching for the right weekend event to wear bright green suspenders attached to short shorts with some stilettos? How about a cropped satin vest reminiscent of Brenda Walsh circa 1991? Or maybe just the hippest outfit your skinny jeans and chunky jewelry can handle? LEFT CAN DANCE, the new dance party hosted by 91.1 WRVU’s SAM PATTON and COURTNEY WILDER every Friday at Ombi Bar, embraces the suspenders, 90210 vests and all of the asymmetrical haircuts Nashville has to offer. The music last Friday was a pretty sweet mix of songs by the Pixies, The Cure, mashups remixing The Clash and the Killers, and hits from The Strokes and The Beatles. It brought out scenesters like JENSEN SPORTAG’s AUSTIN WILKINSON, CASIO CASANOVA and LUKE SCHNEIDER from LYLAS in a pink pastel Oxford. But this is Nashville, so no one danced right away, waiting instead ’til a sizeable crowd took shape before inching toward the dance floor to break out the white man’s overbite. But what’s cool about the Left Can Dance party is that even if you’re not dancing, the crowd and atmosphere still beat most bars in town for best hang-out vibe. No too-cool-for-school kids making you feel inhibited, just great tunes and the kind of dim lighting that makes everyone look good. Those worried about looking stupid on the dance floor need only remember that indie kids can’t really dance, and there’s always some guy doing that “Running Man” dance move in a Ramones T-shirt and Chuck Taylors who’ll take all the attention away from you and your feeble attempt at keeping a beat. As the night wore on and alcohol invaded bloodstreams at alarming rates, the dance floor filled up. Even though the music morphed into a less song-oriented and more shopping-at-Abercrombie vibe, no one seemed to care. The party is free—for now—so git on yer dancin’ shoes.
Tupper where?
At The Basement—that’s where. At 8 p.m. this Thursday, July 6, TUPPER SAUSSY will deliver installment two of his latest musical incarnation, THE CHOCOLATE ORCHID PIANO BAR. Back in the ’60s, Saussy masterminded the eccentric, ambitious pop-rock group The Neon Philharmonic, and in the intervening years has amassed a résumé as varied and outlandish as the title character of Woody Allen’s Zelig, including stints as an author, advertising exec and IRS fugitive. The March debut performance of Chocolate Orchid—part theatrical cabaret, part lounge jazz, with a dollop of country balladry—got strong reviews. Overheard among the crowd: “I heard an evening’s worth of classic pop songs I’d never heard before.” (Saussy’s currently working in the studio with producer WARREN PASH, who knows a thing or two about good pop songs—he co-wrote Hall & Oates “Private Eyes.”)
More from Les
Irrepressible swamp stomper LES KERR will leave his Bayou Band at home for his annual “Fresh From the Gulf” show, an intimate in-the-round featuring songwriters who reside in, or have ties to, the Gulf Coast. This is the first post-Katrina version of the event, making it a little more special. Joining Kerr will be Dobro player DANNY MCCANN of Spanish Fort, Ala. (on Mobile Bay), STEPHEN LEE VEAL from Mobile, and KIM CARSON, a fixture on the New Orleans scene who has been dividing her time between the Crescent City and Houston since Katrina hit. Rounding out the, um, round is EMMIE, who, like Kerr, is a former Mississippi Coast resident now living in Music City. The swamp gets funky at 6:30 p.m. this Saturday, July 8, at the Bluebird.
Party like it’s 1813
Guest conductor ARILD REMMEREIT returns to lead the Symphony in this weekend’s final concert of the Summer Festival, which will open peacefully with the serenading, chamber-like side of MOZART, including the perennial favorite Eine kleine Nachtmusik. Also on the bill is BEETHOVEN’s Seventh Symphony, a work Wagner deemed “the apotheosis of the dance,” exclaiming, “If anyone plays the 7th, tables and benches, cans and cups, the grandmother, the blind and the lame, aye, the children in the cradle fall to dancing.” Translation: this was 19th Century Vienna’s closest thing to a rave. Head over to the War Memorial and don’t forget to bring your glow sticks. ( www.nashvillesymphony.org )
Movement on up
It might not be a deluxe apartment in the sky, but Movement Nashville President Ethan Opelt has ripped a page from the Weezie Jefferson handbook. Opelt recently took command as Universal South Artists’ Manager of Merchandising and Online Promotion. He’ll work under USA manager Marc Dottore, along side Brandon Mauldin and Scott Munn. In a recent interview, Opelt said his new position is not related to the Movement. In other words, don’t expect to see a mass, er, movement of MN artists to Tony Brown’s roster. “There isn’t a pre-conceived plan to integrate [Movement Nashville] with [Universal South Artists],” Opelt said. “We do want to utilize each other’s resources. Movement Nashville may provide Universal South Artists with an A&R resource,” he added. In other MN news: grab your hand sanitizer, cause it’s spreadin’: Movement members AutoVaughn play Exit/In July 8, and the show will feature two unsigned bands slated to become members of Movement Atlanta, launching this fall.
Mall madness redux
Tiffany—yes, that Tiffany—is dusting off her scrunchy and performing at Play Dance Bar Saturday, July 8 at midnight. ’Nuff said.
Email music news to thespin@nasvhillescene.com.
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