Nashville for Free

Jim White is a described by Grimey’s as a “zen master” and a “lyrical genius” who “distills life into a few phrases that can floor you with pithy insights.” I can personally attest to the fact that he is very good. His new album Where it Hits You is out now and he’s playing a few record stores on his way to SXSW!

It starts at 6pm and is free and all-ages, as always.

-Emily

Up in Gallatin Tennessee (550 South Tunnel Road to be exact) there’s this place known as The School. It’s not a functioning school and it’s a really cool space. The space is owned by the family of a friend of mine and apparently one day he and a few of his friends got together and decided to take a day and throw a hell of a festival. It’s called the Big Nashty, it’s $10 in advance/$20 at the gate, and it’s this Saturday from 12pm to 2:30am (they can do that  because it’s not surrounded by houses). Oh yeah, and they’re giving us a pair of tickets to give away.

Being 14.5 hours long you know there has to be one crazy line up. Performers include Hans Condor, Bad Cop, Cy Barkley, Faux Ferocious, Sons of Lions, Natalie Royal, Hide Your Mamas, Evan P. Donahue, Deathstar Lovebeam, Rangi & Papa, Natalie Prass, Natural Child, D Watusi, Couched, Reid Magette, Siberian Traps, Dead Armadillo, Trevor Willmott, Chris Wild, New Pleasure, and Night Beds.

But that’s not all! There will also be fireworks, alcohol, confetti, cars, tents, waffles, food, facepaint, moon bounce, friends, camping, and general fun of incredible proportions.

But back to the free tickets. Normally it’s a mere $10 or $20 per person, but I have a pair of tickets to give to one of you fine people. All you have to do to enter is comment on this blog post. Use your real name and real email address so I can get it easily. I’m picking a winner on Wednesday so be quick about it! That’s a lotta music for free dudes!

-Emily

Have you heard of the Miller Made Music Showcases? There have been a few over the years, and they usually have pretty solid lineups, but none of them have gotten me as pumped as this one.

Tonight’s Miller Made Music Showcase is serving as the CD release party for Matthew Ryan’s newest record, I Recall Standing As Though Nothing Could Fall. First of all, that’s bad-ass title. It’s possibly one of the more awesome album titles I’ve heard recently. Second of all, Matthew Ryan is a remarkably talented songwriter and performer, and I’m a better human being for having heard his stuff.

Equally awesome are the supporting acts for the show: Brian Ritchey, Hannah Miller, and By Lightning. Brian Ritchey is the only of those performers that I’m really familiar with, and that’s because he, Matthew Ryan, and David Mead used to do a writer’s round once a month at the Rutledge. It was awesome. I wish it still existed. Anyway, I walked into one of those shows never having heard of Brian Ritchey and I walked out a fan. What can I say, talented people hang out together. I haven’t really heard much from Hannah Miller and By Lightning, but if they hang with Matt and Brian then they have to be pretty good. Also, Hannah Miller has a pretty rad pilot hat in one of her pictures on her site, so she’s immediately awesome.

The show tonight is at the Mercy Lounge. It’s 21+ and starts at 9pm. I’ll see y’all there. Bring extra socks.

-Emily

You all have probably already heard about Live on the Green by now. It’s an awesome six-week long concert series that has taken place at Public Square Park for the past 2 years, and tonight it enters its 3rd year with a bang.

The event is, as always completely free. Affordable parking is available in the public square parking lot on James Robertson for $3, and the music starts at 5:00. But wait! The music isn’t the only awesome part about Live on the Green. There’s also an expanded food court featuring local vendors, a dedicated area for dogs, as well as pet-adoption and RFID tagging opportunities provided by Happy Tales Humane, free bike check, and tons of other fun stuff. Last year there was a pretty sweet photo booth and I really hope it makes a comeback.

But yes, Live on the Green is totally about the music, and here’s the lineup for tonight:

• 5:00pm – Chris Bailey
• 5:45pm – Will Hoge
• 7:00pm – The Nashville Symphony with KS Rhoads

If you haven’t heard of Spotify then you must have been intentionally avoiding any news stories and conversations about music, the cloud, and the internet in general, because it’s kind of a big deal.

Spotify has been available in Europe for years as a way to listen to music for free as long as you agree to listen to commercials. For as long as it has existed there have rumors about Spotify coming to the United States, but until now it’s been nothing but that, a rumor.

But somehow the rights have been aquired and Spotify has launched in the United States. Right now free accounts are still mostly invitation only, but if you don’t have any friends with Spotify there’s still hope. We got Spotify by going through Klout. Spotify is being smart about dishing out invitations, if you’re considered a half-influential user on Twitter or Facebook on Klout you can get access to a free Spotify account.

But how is Spotify? (more…)

For the past few years 12 South has been hosting its own late-summer concert series, aptly named 12 South Concert Series. You’re probably not going to see any huge bands there, but you’re going to see some local vendors and some cool local bands.

I’ve been once or twice and I’ve always bee really pleased with the bands they choose.

This Saturday is the first concert of the season and will feature performances by Innocent Flannel and Doc Honeypunch with Jacque Faye (as noted by the poster). There will also be appearances by a few food trucks, as it wouldn’t be an event in Nashville without one. You can expect to see Pizza Buds, Moovers and Shakers, and some German food truck that I haven’t seen yet.

The whole shebang gets started at 6pm in Sevier Park. Bring a blanket or a little lawn chair.

-Emily