If you've lived in or near Nashville for more than a week, you've probably figured out that our music scene offers (way) "More Than Just Country." For better or worse, our diversity
is becoming downright chicin the current zeitgeist. Our
Best Local Rock Songs Everseries has been doing its darndest to dispel notions that this branching out is a new thing, but let's face it: A good portion of your loyal Cream team had their most formative music experiences in the last 10-15 years, hence the preponderance of Aughts material.
Noting the relative dearth of local pre-2000 sounds in my own collection, I made a stop at Grimey's Too recently, where Features drummer Rollum Haas happened to be serving as counter master and DJ. His turntable selection that afternoon: Rock 106 Presents: Homegrown, a compilation LP I'd never heard of, featuring artists I'd never heard of, sponsored by a radio station I'd also never heard of, despite living in the mid-state from birth.
The tracks themselves don't necessarily amount to a treasure chest of lost gems: As Rollum accurately pointed out, they're mostly competent applications of what were popular tastes then, bearing the influence of Blue Öyster Cult, The Cars and second-phase ZZ Top, with a little KISS in the mix. The comp itself isn't rare — Grimey himself happened to be nearby when I was checking out, and mentioned that a copy turns up at the store once every few months. But discovering that a hard-rock scene existed here and was strong enough to make a semi-pro-grade 10-song comp is a little like finding out that one of your relatives is actually Mr. T.
Curious to discover what else there might be to the story, I snagged the other copy they had on hand. Take a jump with me to hear and see for yourself what else I learned about Homegrown.
