Nashville Music Blog

"Everyone can kiss my fucking ass!"

​Remember when Haruch found those videos of Kings of Leon playing shuffleboard (or "pushboard") down at Loser's with The Features? Well, the videos have unfortunately been evicted from the Interwebs "due to a copyright claim by Vector Management," but the true product of that boozy excursion has made it to print. NME's James McMahon sat down with London's most beloved Nashvillians to talk about their epic boners for The Features -- something we at the Cream actually have in common with the Followills -- and why they basically created a record label (Snakes and Serpents) just to put out Some Kind of Salvation.

As I've said before, whether you love Kings of Leon, hate them, or land somewhere near the southern end of the love-hate spectrum, you have to respect the fact that they're looking out for the locals. The NME story covers, in detail, why C-Fo took a chance with The Features and why it is he thinks so highly of them, and you should most certainly give it a read. It's quite flattering for The Features. That said, Followill also happens to use some wonderfully peculiar and hilarious euphemisms that look extra-bizarre out of context, so have a look at those juicy quotes (sans context) after the jump.

When The Features played Exit/In two weekends ago, there was a lot of hubbub and sleeve-talking about this and that and English-journalists-what and Kings-of-Leon's-sound-guy-this and guest-list-who, but in the end it was just another great Feature show.

Or was it?

It bears repeating.

​I didn't catch the U.S. Air Force Reserve spot during this year's Super Bowl -- maybe because I had gotten fed up with bad attempts at Internet meme-jokes and stopped watching The Commercials -- but it looks like the White Stripes did not approve or even know about the version of their song "Fell in Love With a Girl" that was used in the commercial. From a statement:

We believe our song was re-recorded and used without permission of the White Stripes, our publishers, label or management.

The White Stripes take strong insult and objection to the Air Force Reserve presenting this advertisement with the implication that we licensed one of our songs to encourage recruitment during a war that we do not support.

The link to the commerical posted to the White Stripes website does not seem to be playing the video in question anymore. Furthermore, Arthur reports:

Apparently the geniuses at Blaine Warren Advertising of Las Vegas, Nevada were behind this idiocy. According to the New York Times, Blaine Warren will be issuing a statement later today. That should be amusing reading.

(And of course Arthur mentions Godsmack.) I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that re-recording a song by a well-known band and using it in your Super Bowl commercial is so fucking bush league it boggles the mind. Oh, and props to J.W. for the countermeasures.

​

Oh, Taylor Swift. Will your tenacious reign of adorable terror ever end? Apparently, not any time soon. We're barely a month into 2010 and it's already a big year for Swifty. Her acting debuts in the feature film Valentine's Day on Feb. 12, and it's only a matter of days before she's taking ass and kicking names at the Grammys on Sunday. As if that weren't enough, the ever-entrepreneurial Swift is about to unleash her own line of greeting cards. As you can see from the sample above, they more or less rival her music in terms of edginess with more than a few featuring cute and cuddly kittens and puppies. However, being the infinitely bigger name, she's also stolen the thunder from another line coming out this year... ours.

Nashville Cream plans to issue a series of local rock-themed greeting cards later this year, designed by our very own staff here at the Cream. Dig on some samples after the jump ...

​As Maloney told you the other day, Doyle "D-Funk" Davis has retired from WRVU, electing not to accept the slot he was offered at the station and thus ending a 15-year run of funkifying the Nashville airwaves. On the heels of that bad news comes the equally bad news that this past week's episode of the venerable country show Hipbilly Jamboree was its last.

We're told that while the show was approved to continue, every time slot requested by hosts Randy Fox and Kels Koch was denied. Apparently the only times they did get offered were either late at night or early in the morning -- times they aren't able to do the show. If something as banal as a scheduling conflict seems to you like an awfully lame reason for a long-running show (it's been on since 1997) as good as Hipbilly Jamboree to disappear from Nashville radio, then you're paying attention. And you know what's at stake.

​Back in November we reported on the investigation into Gibson Guitar regarding possible illegal importation of an endangered species of rosewood from Madagascar. Well, it looks as though they're in even more hot water, and this time it's over some alleged price-fixing. According to the Nashville Business Journal, a series of lawsuits have been filed against Gibson -- as well as Guitar Center, Yamaha, Fender and possibly others -- alleging that they artificially boosted prices under the guidance of the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM). This, of course, would be in direct violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. From the NBJ's story:

"The Sherman Act was enacted to promote competition (in) the U.S. market, because competition provides consumers with the best price possible," said Hollis Salzman, a partner at New York law firm Labaton Sucharow, which is representing plaintiff Craig Kennedy. The suits focus largely on national instrument retailer Guitar Center, as well as the association, but Gibson and fellow manufacturers Fender and Yamaha appear as co-defendants. Caroline Galloway, a spokeswoman for Gibson, could not be reached for comment.

Well, Caroline Galloway -- the spokeswoman in question -- issued an official statement that we at the Scene received today. You can read the full statement after the jump.

The future of record albums?

​So today's the big day! We're all gonna find out about the new Apple tablet computer/giant iPod touchscreen thingy, whatever it's called, which is maybe "iPad," which does not sound appealing to these ears, or "iSlate," which sounds a little bit better, but also sounds like "isolate" (which is kind of what handheld electronics do to people sometimes).

The big questions here -- aside from the tech spec geekery -- are, of course: WILL IT SAVE PUBLISHING? and WILL IT SAVE RECORD ALBUM SALES?

​I know you were all getting bumpy skin just thinking about what Perez Hilton said about Kings of Leon. (Which was that they "have left Columbia Records for Warner Brothers where they will be paying to record their own albums!" The gist: KOL would pay for part of their recording costs in exchange for a larger cut of profits from record sales.)

Please rest assured, however: Spinner reports that KOL are not signing a new contract with Warner, and that Nathan Followill said as much on his Twitters. So, to recap, here are the things Kings of Leon are not doing: 1) leaving their record label; 2) opening for The Features at Exit/In. If there's anything else they're not doing, we'll let you know first eventually!

[Spinner]

In case you haven't heard, (which you probably haven't) the Pitchfork-approved pioneers of coke-rap, Virginia Beach's Clipse, are making a very special appearance at Phatkaps Boutique on Bell Road next Friday. You may be asking yourself, "How does Phatkaps keep landing the hottest shows in town?" and the answer is easy -- PK owner Talmage knows everybody. Also. he moves more of Clipse's clothing line, Play Cloths, than anyone in a 500-mile radius so, obviously, he's got some connections. N.O.B.O.T.S. and Future are opening, and if you want to get into this very special, very private show, you're gonna have to follow Phatkaps on the Twitter and cross your fingers.

"Bonnaroooooo!"

Over the past couple of days, the Bonnaroo Twitter feed has been drip-dripping a series of clues -- some harder to decipher than others -- about this year's festival lineup.

First came the promise of a "bigger bang" this year, which appears to be an allusion to the Rolling Stones (or a coded message about the drugs). Then there's the "big pimpin' " reference, which certainly points to Jay-Z (though the Jigga Man is already slated for Coachella), and the "jokerman" reference suggests Bob Dylan. Not sure if all the "monkey" clues have anything to do with Gorillaz or Michael Nesmith, and I'm at a loss with this one. Just as well, since we'll all know soon enough, but in the meantime, let the speculation continue unabated!

​Rumors are abuzz in the Tweetosphere and elsewhere, and it looks as though the folks at Goner Records have now confirmed:

It is with great sadness that we report the passing of our good friend Jay Reatard. Jay died in his sleep last night. We will pass along information about funeral arrangements when they are made public.

Nothing has been issued regarding cause of death. Reatard was 29 years old. Last we heard from Reatard, he was tweeting that he was feeling sick and beefing with the band Liquor Store. Memphis police have opened a death investigation.

This man was permitted to reproduce.

Our very own Aunt B (of Pith in the Wind) broke the news back in October that John Rich would in fact be having a child -- a child he would in fact be naming Cash. Cash Rich. Well, it's finally happened, meaning The Apocalypse is only about ... oh, one horseman away.

Cash Rich was born on Sunday, and the headlines are in: "Ego-tard Country Wreck John Rich Names His Newborn Son Cash"; "John Rich's Wife Gave Birth to a White Rapper" (props to SFP for sending me that one); "John Rich from Big & Rich Names His Baby ... Cash Rich. Lame!!" We'd like to extend our deepest congratulations to John and our deepest condolences to Cash.

You've played more than a few rock shows in this town. Sometimes it's been to a mostly empty room on a weeknight. Sometimes there's been a decent crowd. You're paying dues, and in exchange people pay you compliments. Pat you on the back. Say nice things about your band as you're carrying your equipment out of the club. It's hard to know sometimes whether the praise is sincere or just empty friend-calories. So let's break down what people are really saying when they say what they're saying, with the Nashville Cream guide to deciphering post-show glad-handing.

1. "Great show."
Translation: I was on the smoking deck while you were playing.

If there aren't 50 comments on this thread by 4 p.m., this blog will explode.

​Pop quiz, hotshots! Christmas is over, you've rolled your crusty ass back into work, and you need a local rock jolt. How about trying your hand at these five locally flavored questions? We'll post the answers at 4 p.m.

1.) What grizzled local drummer is playing with Jay Reatard on New Year's Eve?

2.) What fresh-faced keyboard player may or may not join local trio And the Relatives?

3.) What two local indie superstars (and labelmates) are teaming up for a familiarly named duets album?

4.) What local rock icon got rid of his beard in 2004--much to British fans' dismay--only to sorta regrow it lately?

5.) Which two local venue luminaries are hosting back-to-back b-day celebrations tonight and tomorrow night at their respective watering holes?

Answers after the jump.

WHICH long-dead Nashville rock threesome is planning a reunion show? From the Scene archives: "Their high-energy pop has much in common with Superchunk and should be a perfect appetizer for the main course." Whoa! The same week that review was written, Lambchop played Slow Bar!

IT is also rumored they will be joined at Venue TBA by a recently back-in-the-game Joe, Marc's Brother! Everything old is new again!

THERE are also reports (unconfirmed so no hopes up!) that another long-lost local band may pitch in: This group is made up of men who are, simply, the best around!

​Fallout from the recent VSC board decision to limit the participation of community DJs at WRVU has officially begun: Yesterday, WRVU music directors Skye Bacus and Hugh Schlesinger announced to their colleagues that they have resigned their positions in protest of the cap. In an email, the two Vanderbilt students say, "In the face of the VSC Board's decision to ignore our own advice and opinions, as well as those of the majority of the E-Staff, we have realized that we are merely laborers who keep things running and feel no need to deceive ourselves with false titles."

​For a minute there, it looked like there might be a workable alternative to cutting the number of community (or non-affiliate) DJs at WRVU in half and limiting the number of community DJs to 25 per semester. But the Vanderbilt Student Communications board has met and decided to uphold its original decision. In an email to the authors of a counterproposal that was presented to the VSC board, Vanderbilt professor Kevin Leander, chair of the VSC board (and the sole dissenter in the original vote), had this to say:

Thank you for submitting a counterproposal regarding the VSC Boards [sic] recent policy decision regarding the number of non-affiliate DJs on the air with WRVU. As a Board, all of us sincerely appreciated the thought and effort of the counterproposal. We considered your proposal carefully, discussing it and related issues during our entire (90 minute) meeting on November 30th. However, the Board has decided that it is in the best interests of WRVU to keep our current policy regarding the limits of non-affiliate DJ numbers.

The cap will go into effect spring semester and continue through summer 2010--a time when few students are on campus, and the community DJ cap will be most noticeable. Get ready for a lot of DJ Hal.

www.tuberadio.com

​If you've been paying attention to the chit-chat about our local airwaves lately, you know there's been much ado about the recent decision by the VSC board to limit the number of community (or "non-affiliate") DJs to 25 per semester.

In this week's City Limits, I delve into the issue a bit deeper, and talk to many of those involved, including VSC board members Kevin Leander and Mark Wollaeger. Understandably, many of the DJs I contacted did not want to talk on the record for fear of either jeopardizing their own shows or biasing the board. In any case, it looks like things are headed, at the very least, toward more discussion. Check it.

The tl;dr version: VSC board votes to cap community DJs at 25, brown stuff hits rotating thing, Facebook group/petition organized to counter. (Join here.)

​Happy Thanksgiving! Wherever you are, we hope you're enjoying yourself, and that you didn't kill too many polar bears to get there. We at the Cream have lots to be thankful for--we still have jobs, we're not unemployed and someone still pays us to write the shit we write. Plus, we live in America, center of the world, where our president has a kinda geeky sense of humor sometimes. So yeah, we're pretty lucky. Not as lucky as some, but lucky.

To celebrate, we're taking a few days off. "See" you on Monday! Between now and then, maybe your land-grabbing ass can take a minute to read about the bitter tears of Johnny Cash. Or look at some animals with lightsabers. Or, y'know, help the damn economy by spending some money! Now let's take a look at some Black Friday deals on music around town.

​Tragic news from Dinwiddie County, Virginia. According to their local Fox affiliate, one of the tour buses in Miley Cyrus' vast caravan "crashed and rolled on its side" early this morning, killing one person and injuring several.

Virginia State Police said 10 people were on board the bus when it went off the road and overturned. The singer was not on board and is not at the scene of the accident. Police did not confirm the identities of the injured but WTVR-TV was told the person who died was the driver of the bus.

Cyrus is slated to play Sommet Center Wednesday, Nov. 25, with her brother's band. Here's what Maloney thinks about that.

​It breaks my heart to have to inform you, dear readers, that yet another local musician has found himself the victim of a break-in. Altered Statesman's Steve Poulton sent along an email from his collaborator Joe McMahan regarding the theft of local Michael Backes' gear. See the full list of what was taken after the jump.

My friend Mike Backes was broken in to yesterday and had some really cool gear stolen that he had worked very hard to acquire. I feel like it is my duty to pass along the list and hopefully help get this stuff back and prosecute the vile imbecile who perpetrated this crime. Here's the list:

Bad Cop

​* The fellas at We Own This Town brought us word last week that local psych-punk bandits Bad Cop just signed a deal with New York-based Reach Out International Records (ROIR). ROIR was behind early releases from Television, New York Dolls, Beastie Boys, Bad Brains, The MC5, GG Allin and loads more--that's a pretty good sign, no? Check out Bad Cop's artist profile at the ROIR site, where you can listen to some tunes. I recommend "Daylight." BC are playing tomorrow night at Little Hamilton, in case you feel like getting your real-time live stream on.

​The next time you rip a sweet, sweet pentatonic riff on the fretboard of your totally awesome Gibson guitar, think about the lemurs. Nashville-based Gibson Guitars was raided by the FBI United States Fish & Wildlife Service (!) today, according to SouthComm's resident bow-tie-wearing emo apologist, J.R. Lind, who writes over at the Nashville Post:

Sources say the Nashville-based guitar manufacturer is being investigated for violating the Lacey Act, a key piece of environmental law, for importing endangered species of rosewood from Madagascar.

Rosewood is widely used in the construction of guitars and sells for $5,000 per cubic meter, more than double the price of mahogany. The island nation off Africa's east coast is a key producer of the hardwood, the export of which has links to international criminal activity.

A statement from Gibson released late Tuesday afternoon says the company is "fully co-operating" with the investigation.

Full disclosure: I own two Gibson guitars, manufactured in 1966 and 1975, respectively--in other words, back when we didn't care what no lemurs in Africa was doin' long as we could have us some nice geetars. Lind promises to update the story as more information becomes available. It all begs the question: Could Lenny be a mole?

Update 5:26 p.m.: It was the United States Fish & Wildlife Service, not the FBI. Also, no charges have been filed.

Update 8:47 p.m.: To further clarify, the blockquote has been replaced to reflect the update to the Nashville Post story.

[Nashville Post]

Steve Cross

Arish "King" Khan, at Exit/In in 2008.

Update, 12:21 p.m.: Jessi Darlin called from the road to say that they have heard news from King Khan & BBQ Show's camp. The band was detained by police near Hopkinsville, Ky., and Arish "King" Khan, Mark Sultan and their touring keyboard player have all been released and are staying in a hotel room. The band's tour manager is apparently still in jail. Needless to say, the band will not be making it to their show in Lawrence, Kan., tonight at the Jackpot Saloon. Those Darlins say they will be selling KK&BBQ merch, including their latest, Invisible Girl, and a Mark Sultan solo album. Still no word on why the band was arrested.

The long arm of Johnny Law seems to have snagged a touring act not long after leaving our fair city. A to Z, the music blog of St. Louis' Riverfront Times, reports that The King Khan & BBQ Show didn't make it to their gig last night at Off Broadway in the Gateway City and were apparently arrested somewhere between Nashville and St. Louis, though at the moment no one--including the band's publicist--seems to know exactly where or why.

Our own Those Darlins opened the Off Broadway show, as they did in Nashville when the two bands played Exit/In together Wednesday night, but even they did not know what was going on with their tour mates.

Movin' on.

​J.R. Lind, SouthComm's resident bow-tie-wearing emo apologist, reports that Rocketown has found a new location and will be selling its current home to the city for a cool 5.6 milly:

To make way for the extension of Korean Veterans Boulevard, Metro will buy the teen-centered music venue Rocketown for $5.6 million.

The Metro Development and Housing Agency board agreed to purchase the site at the corner of Sixth Avenue and Shirley Street Wednesday. ReGina Newkirk, Rocketown's executive director, said it was important the not-for-profit maintain its downtown presence.

"It's crucial to us to reach the youth we serve," she said.

Newkirk said Rocketown is close to finalizing a $6.2 million deal to purchase the Grooms Engine building on Fourth Avenue.

Apparently the new space will be smaller than the current location, but they are planning on offering the same stuff (music, skating, caffeine). Via Nashville Post.

Looks like there are still a few tickets left for tonight's Leonard Cohen show at TPAC. Get 'em here. Speaking of the greatest Jewish Zen monk songwriter in Canadian history, there's a new biography of Cohen coming out soon, and, according to Kevin Richards over at American Songwriter, it gives some details about a new album due out some time in the next year. Better yet, TwentyFourBit reports at least one new song making its way into the repertoire at recent shows--a Chicago performance of "the other blues song," as Cohen reportedly called it, above.

​You may have already seen that yet another study (this one an independent survey in Britain) concludes that people who steal a lot of music also buy a lot of music. As Cory Doctorow over at Boing Boing put it: "[P]eople who are music superfans do more of everything to do with music: they see more live shows, listen to more radio, buy more CDs, buy more botlegs of live shows, buy more t-shirts, talk about music more, do more downloading -- all of it." Very good. The music industry's response? "[A]nyone who lives in a house that generates three or more copyright infringement notices will be barred from Internet access," according to Doctorow. In other words, go after the people who are buying the most music because they are, at the same time, stealing it. If these were cars we were talking about, and not digital files, that might seem like the right strategy. But this the 21st century of music consumption, even if some people don't want to think it is.

Let love fail.

What would you do to get into a Lenny Kravitz show? More or less than what you'd do-ooh-ooh for a Klondike bar? One crazed L.K. fan tried to fake her way into The Ryman last night. Emphasis here on "tried." Brantley Hargrove reports over at Pith in the Wind:

Here's what the cops say happened:

Jessica Poe went to the Ryman Monday evening and claimed she was an employee slated to work that night, according to police affidavits. There was no record of this and a Ryman employee told her to get lost. So Poe lurked around the entrance, waiting for her opportunity -- a time-honored strategy slightly more original than Kravitz's songwriting. So when a stagehand opened a door, Poe allegedly sprinted past and disappeared into "the main office."

When she was spotted, she fled out back and was detained by security. Police arrested Poe and took her into booking, but there was a semantic problem. The sign at the entrance of the booking area read "Prisoners Only." No, Poe asserted, she is no prisoner. Then she fell to the ground, police say, forcing the officers to carry her. Add resisting arrest to that criminal trespass charge.

She should have been hanging out at Jack's!

So back in the day, years before I lived here and years before most of you who did were of age to get into a rock show, Nashville had a pretty diverse and vibrant rock, punk and metal scene that some might even argue trumps the one we're enjoying today. It was an era of four-track demos, weekly trips to Kinko's to make flyers and booking shows over the telephone. I'm talking roughly 1994 and a band of young hooligans called Govern were playing its first shows at Lucy's. Govern toured the country in a van courtesy of MMR's Book Your Own Fuckin' Life, put out a bunch of cassettes and a little bit of vinyl, got reviews in a few zines, flirted with notable indie labels and even did a tour with Unsane before breaking up in 1999. All this without logging onto MySpace, dialing a cell phone or even burning a CD. Totes Amazing.

What exactly is a grand marshal? Well, when it comes to parades, a grand marshal is a ceremonial dignitary. More than anything, it's a figurehead sort of role filled by a person of high esteem--no real responsibilities other than lookin' cool, being respected and showing up on time. Last year, the Nashville Christmas Parade's grand marshal was some dude from American Idol. Pretty nice, right? Well, apparently this year Music City will really be classing it up a touch. From John Rich's Twitter [sic]:

Dec4th!!!! Guess who's gonna be the GRAND MARSHALL for the Nashville Christmas Parade???? ME!!! Hahaa! Hope to see ya'll there! Hohoho!

Wow. He really didn't even give us time to guess. That's probably for the best, because, personally, I likely would've guessed someone like Phil Bredesen or Eddie George. You know, not someone who gets kicked out of Café Coco for late-night douchery or someone who allegedly smacks uninvited guests upside the head like one of the raging pubescent harpies on My Super Sweet 16. Oh, and if you don't already follow Rich's Twitter, do it. Otherwise, you'll miss out on gems like this one. Though such amazing updates might slow down now that Rich Daddy is breeding. Word on the street is that he's naming the kid Cash. Seriously.