Vera Bloom Calls Down the Thunder at The 5 Spot

The rain poured down in sheets against the roof while I waited for Vera Bloom’s Sunday night livestream from The 5 Spot to begin. I could hear the wind swirling through the trees, trying to force itself through the door. Even with the volume all the way up, my computer speakers struggled to stay above the outside noise. Over the previous hour, Nashville’s emergency system had sent me a text message, a cellphone pop-up alert and an automated phone call to warn me about the impending storm. It was especially eerie knowing that about a year ago, on a night that felt a lot like Sunday night, a tornado outbreak tore across Middle Tennessee. You remember the night of March 2, 2020, and the early hours of March 3; we all remember.

On Friday, long before the weekend storm started to roil, the local rocker by way of Seattle noted the date on Instagram. “Sunday will have almost been a year exactly since the tornado hit Nashville and guess where I was that night?” she wrote. “Dancing at The 5 Spot for Motown Monday. Little did we know a tornado was coming and about to rip apart buildings literally right around the corner from us. The power went out and the staff stayed very calm and instructed us to get into the middle of the room. It was all so surreal. What a year this has been…

“I can’t wait to make some noise with the band for you and give this year a little karate chop to the jugular.”

Indeed, every step we take toward normality feels like a victory, a cleansing karate chop to the past year’s jugular. Bearing witness to the musicians who are fighting to take back the stages that the tornado and the pandemic stole from them is nothing short of cathartic.

Bloom was clearly ready to exorcise some pent-up frustration of her own. At exactly 8 p.m., the show began without a word. With backup from bassist Levi J. Miller, guitarist Jacob Gann and drummer Brian Chinino, Bloom ripped straight into “Blue,” a song from her new self-titled EP. “Blue” sparkles with Liz Phair vibes and a renewed sense of self, as Bloom sings: “Wrap me in blankets, send me out to sea / Say goodbye to outgrown versions of me / Sweep up my skin shed on the floor / Take away the memories I don't want anymore.” It’s the perfect song to open with after surviving a year of challenges.

Then came “Bad Decisions,” a boisterous rock song that borrows attitude and swagger from The Donnas and The Runaways. Bloom set it aflame with the kind of guttural yowls that, rightfully, earn the singer comparisons to Courtney Love. She utilized that same vocal prowess on a new song, “Say Goodbye,” a breakup jam that starts out slow and syrupy. She changed the atmosphere in an instant, stomping on a pedal and lunging toward the mic to scream, “You seem to forget I’m a fucking queen!” 

By the time Bloom & Co. wrapped up the 40-ish-minute set — with the singer sweetly dedicating the last song “Love Like Knives” to her sister — I hadn’t noticed that the squally downpour outside had quieted and the tornado watch was canceled. Bloom was a force all her own. But instead of destroying everything in her path, she helped build us back up with an evening of vigor and resilience. Her return to The 5 Spot was a reminder that not everything that’s been pushed aside in the pandemic is gone forever. And maybe it’ll even be back sooner than later.