Summer in the City
Friday
You didn't think we'd be late to our own party, did you? Not only is that a bad look, but stragglers to Night 1 of our Sounds Like Summer/Cream Anniversary Party — which went down Friday and Saturday night at Cannery Ballroom, Mercy Lounge and The High Watt — were doomed to miss Bully, who's completely taken over our summer jam playlist since they released their debut EP in February and their "Brainfreeze" single just a couple of months ago. Kicking things off in Mercy, singer Alicia Bognanno laid on the '90s vibes thick, sounding less like the Shangri-Las and more like straight-forward Sonic Youth. As much as we've enjoyed our share of Best Coast clones over the past three years, Bully's punchy alterna-rock is the exact sort of palate cleanser — and rock show starter — that we needed.
Southern-fried bar rockers Promised Land Sound — who we just can't not call "Promised Land," despite the recent sonic addition to their moniker — followed as a trio, their sometime organist Ricardo Alessio sitting a few shows out as the boys hone their sound as a three-piece. PLS brought out cuts from last year's very strong and Faces-informed Stoned Eagle EP, along with new-to-us tunes from their forthcoming full-length Paradise of Bachelors debut.
We cruised into Cannery Ballroom to find Hotpipes in great voice, despite our difficulty in hearing frontman Jonathan Rogers' vocals. But we won't kvetch too much, because the complete effect of the group was magnificent. Their contemporary take on golden-era pop stands out because its intricate arrangements delicately balance the familiar with the unpredictable, and translate well to the stage thanks to strong musicianship all around, including drum hero Jerry Pentecost behind the kit, with Dan Sommers and Dave Paulson doubling on keys and guitar.
Stepping up for an ailing SCHOOLS, What Up English jumped on The High Watt's bill at the last minute, delivering an energetic helping of their dance-centric rock to a fresh-faced and hyped audience. Sporting left-handed guitar and bass slingers — as well as a tastefully incorporated talk box and a fancy light-up sign — the foursome looked impressive and casually polished. More importantly, they were breezy and bursting with brotherly camaraderie, bouncing along a funky groove that encouraged plenty of hip dipping, and even a little of "Just the Hands Part of 'Single Ladies'."
Morning Teleportation has been hustling along for half a decade, touring the country with fellow Bowling Green rockers Cage the Elephant as well as on their own ticket and making a record with Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock — but they've somehow stayed mostly off our radar. As they played in Cannery, we noticed their indie-psych sound has a little dance consciousness to it, but the tinges of progressive rock mean more complex rhythms and harmonies than your average club banger. On paper, this sounds like a recipe for disaster, but leader Tiger Merritt & Co. pull it off with a flair not far-removed from Tame Impala, moving between sound worlds with professional-grade ease.
Turbo Fruits were looking uncharacteristically dapper in neckties as they kicked off their set in Mercy Lounge, but they still shredded through their stoner-rock party anthems with little formality. Their set was of course heavily populated by tunes from last year's Butter, as well as some new power-poppy numbers. As we expected, they ticked off every item from the Turbo Fruits Stage-Move Checklist: Dave McCowen thumped along with his bass held behind his head; frontman Jonas Stein did his trademark jump-kicks, dove into crowd, somersaulted back onstage and detuned his ax in the process; drummer Matt Hearn laid into the cymbals, sticks twirling and hair flying as he pummeled his kit; Kingsley Brock stepped center-stage to rip his psychedelic solos. Also, we must add, Butter's "Sweet Thang" is a power ballad for the ages — it's easily among the best songs Stein has ever written.
The black-and-white-clad Those Darlins had a full house when they launched into their set at Mercy Lounge, but a big chunk of the crowd was siphoned off by The Features somewhere around the midway point. Those who remained were treated to a set that featured excellent Screws Get Loose tracks including "Be Your Bro" and "Mystic Mind," plus some numbers presumably from their forthcoming LP — a sly, sinister, down-tempo set-ender with a chant-along chorus was a standout. Frontwoman Jessi Darlin has become a little powerhouse in recent years, and she even pulled out a righteous, wailing guitar solo or two, scowling and shaking and perching on the edge of the stage.
Meanwhile, the young upstarts in Plastic Visions tore the roof off of The High Watt. Started as a side-project collaboration between Cage the Elephant guitarist Brad Shultz and cousin Kane Stewart, Plastic Visions sound so far removed from the radio-rock of Cage that we could hardly believe they were in the same family tree. Stewart pinballed around the stage like a madman, wailing punk anthems off his band's debut EP (like "Bitch This Ain't L.A." and "Kamikaze," for instance) and throwing himself around like a rag doll.
Back in the Ballroom, The Features were in full effect, delivering as many fan favorites as could possibly fit into their hour-and-a-quarter set. Starting at the beginning, they presented "Exhibit A" and "Temporary Blues" before branching out into cuts from the freshly waxed self-titled LP, including a nice coupling of "Won't Be Long" and lead single "This Disorder." Matt Pelham's meaty guitar and Roger Dobbs' gnarly bass tones drove the rock side of the equation, Mark Bond's spot-on keyboards added the right electro-gloss to the dance side (we really shouldn't have bothered wondering how "Ain't No Wonder," the most industrial tune on The Features, would come off), and Rollum Haas' athletic drums cemented it together. The slightly ominous "Rotten" struck us as an odd choice for the encore, but we felt satisfied as we slipped off to rest up for Saturday night's shenanigans.
Saturday In case you haven't noticed, Kings of Leon Padawans The Weeks have quite possibly become the new Biggest Band in Nashville. The fresh-faced, ragtag quintet made that clear Saturday night when despite a driving rainstorm and flood warnings that would've normally kept Nashvillians away from the city's roundabouts, a capacity crowd filled the Cannery for what had to have been the band's biggest local headlining gig to date. And giving an even more impassioned response than Serpents and Snakes labelmates The Features got the previous night, that audience — with famous faces including those of Nashville's Hayden Panettiere and KOL's Jared Followill in the mix — gave The Weeks full rock-star treatment, feverishly eating up the band's KOL-inspired brand of rock 'n' roll. There was a dedicated front row of X-Sharpied hands, which were attached to kids singing along and a slew of crowd surfers tumbling over their heads and over the stage barricade. "This is wonderful," scraggly, bespectacled lead singer Cyle Barnes bantered a few songs into the set. Whether you love the band as much as the teenagers crowding the stage Saturday, or you're eager to jump on the naysayers' bandwagon that follows any suddenly popular local band, you must admit The Weeks are working hard to harvest and define the raw potential that got them a deal a year-and-a-half ago, and every six months we check in on the band to see the leaps and bounds they grow by, we walk away impressed.
We'd begun our night by strolling into the Cannery megaplex just before the rainstorm began. But the downpour didn't stop Cannery Ballroom from filling up early, as openers Sol Cat delivered their thumping, dancy indie rock. "Fishin' With John" from their eponymous debut is undeniably catchy, and the dudes were tight and practiced. But talking with a colleague, The Spin agreed we'd like to see the youngsters take their synthesis of indie rock and revivalist post-punk a step further — they can channel their influences effectively, so why not take it a step in their own direction?
It's been barely two weeks since The Spin last caught Graham Fitzpenn's OG psych-rock revue Majestico, so we figured this one would write itself. At least, that's what we thought before the band threw us a few curveballs in The High Watt. Sporting a new backing band and a whole new batch of songs, Majestico opened the set with a ballad — a move we haven't yet heard from the band. As if the new tunes weren't already a bit more mature than the bratty acid pop we've come to expect, Maj dropped a cover of Mazzy Star's "Fade Into You" for maximum bliss.
The Kingston Springs are now supplementing their bouncy, grooving indie rock with an organist — not to mention a touch of trumpet here and there from co-frontman James Guidry. The Springs are always good for big sounds and rubbery bass lines, which they delivered as the Ballroom grew rapidly stickier with humidity. We'll admit, we're prone to calling The Kingston Springs "shape-shifters," and here's why: They dip into bluesy, psychy Nuggets zone, dusty Western folk zone, and bobbing, catchy indie-rock zone. That makes it hard for The Spin to pin down their identity, but they certainly know how to write and play, even if their sound isn't always cohesive.
The rain and the early time slot weren't doing Kyle Andrews any favors, but the small crowd gathered for his set in Mercy boasted enthusiastic supporters — vocal enough that it took several songs to realize Andrews' mic was dead. The amiable indie-pop pro responded in kind, meeting fans' urge to dance the night away with old favorites like "Sushi" and "You Always Make Me Smile," along with cuts from his brand-new Brighter Than the Sun. Capitalizing on his success in the licensing arena, Andrews & Co. put on a technically sophisticated show, complete with tempo-synced lights and computer animation.
With attached buzzwords like "indie," "Brooklyn," "Bob Dylan" and, we must sheepishly admit, "Nashville," the first impression might be that recent Brooklyn transplants Clear Plastic Masks belong in that hipster bear trap along with the American Spirits and PBR. But whatever hype may follow them around, the live show consistently bears it out. Saturday in The High Watt was a fine specimen, as the quartet balanced tension against no-holds-barred release, sending foamy beers flying and stirring up the sizable crowd. If the reverb-soaked new jam that closed the set is any indication, the follow-up to last year's "Working Girl" 7-inch currently underway at Nashville's Bomb Shelter will bring the same carefully bottled chaos and garage-soul strut we've come to know and quite seriously enjoy.
Local songstress Tristen's evolution from darling folk rocker to sultry post-pop diva has been an interesting one to observe. We've seen lineup changes come (but mostly go) as she at one point boiled it down to little more than a vintage drum machine and husband/guitarist Buddy Hughen for backup. She's since built the band's latest lineup into easily its greatest. Both acoustic and electronic beats are handled with precision and finesse thanks to Hanzelle's Jeremi Morris. It's also unlikely Tristen could have found more muscle for the band's low end than Kink Ador bassist/singer Sharon Koltick. Along with Hughen, Tristen's post-modern indie pop sounds more cohesive than ever, with songs from her forthcoming Caves igniting the bubbling Mercy Lounge crowd.
How long has it been since How I Became the Bomb last played a show in Nashville? A year? Two? Regardless, it's been a solid minute since we've been graced by the presence of The Bomb's synth-pop spectacle, but you wouldn't know it from their phoenix-like re-emergence in Mercy. Armed with a handful of new tunes alongside old faves like "Killing Machine" and "Secret Identity," How I Became the Bomb is still expertly peddling the kind of funky future pop that Daft Punk only recently adopted for their new record.
And The Weeks had a tough act to follow in Saturday night's other long-haired Cannery headliners, The Whigs. The newly Nashville (via Athens, Ga.) veteran neo-grunge-meets-garage-rock-rival trio also handily whipped the wall-to-wall crowd into a fist-pumping frenzy. Denim-clad, sweat-drenched singer-guitarist Parker Gispert dropped to his knees, attacking his guitar during an ear-splitting psych-rock finale freak-out near set's end.
Despite all of the happenings at Jeffrey Drag Records, Bad Cop's Adam Moult & Co. were anything but distracted during their headlining set in The High Watt. The sea of sweaty partiers had diminished somewhat, but every head was nodding as we pushed through. The five-piece displayed a singular focus on nervy aggression, brewing up a satisfying, cathartic stew of all things punk and rock, from The Stooges' primal grit to Television's puff of ozone, into post-punk and beyond, leaving us primed and ready for the release of their new Light On EP.
Email thespin@nashvillescene.com.
