Next Big Nashville, I hardly knew ye

Next Big Nashville is over. It feels like summer camp ended.

For the uninitiated, this 4-night onslaught of music that takes over 20+ Nashville clubs is one of the highlights of the Nashville year. I hoped I'd find a couple of bands to follow up with throughout the year, and I was not disappointed.

Takeaways--

Favorite Band: Waves on Waves

Virtuosic mid-80's British New Wave sound dusted off and given a new suit of clothes by outstanding musicians who also are charismatic showmen. Conjured sonic images of Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Erasure, and George Michael.

I couldn't have been happier.

Runner Up: Matthew Perryman Jones

I concede that the masses were right on this one. Watching him play feels like it must have felt like watching a young Bono pour out his own poet soul in his soaring tenor in the early 80's. You can't help thinking that Jones also has about 20 years of important and awe-inspiring music left to make. Here's hoping.

Oh, and bringing Glen Phillips up to rehash old Toad stuff didn't hurt, either. Fear was the first album I ever bought with my own money, and that music holds a very special place in my heart.

Favorite Experience: Glen Phillips, Dan Wilson, Daniel Tashian, and Kevin Griffin @ Bluebird

It was like hearing my high school record collection without a backup band. And hearing the stories behind those songs. And caring more than I knew how to then.

Glen Phillips is the big, recognizable name here, but the others are names you should know: Dan Wilson, formerly of Semisonic, who wrote "I'm Not Ready To Make Nice" for the Dixie Chicks, and who shared a great story about Semisonic's hit, Closing Time; Kevin Griffin, frontman for Better Than Ezra, who shared their hit Good before revealing that he'd co-written Howie Day's beautiful song Collide, and finishing up with Juicy; and Daniel Tashian, who fronts the retro-chill Silver Seas (formerly The Bees-U.S.), whose music sounds like Jackson Browne, Orleans, and The Byrds pressed together.

Suffice it to say this was an incredible, worth-being-crammed-in-a-pew-with-strangers, only-in-Nashville evening showcasing 4 guys who were obviously enjoying each other as much as we were enjoying them. For the record, these guys are all funny, charming, and brilliant songsmiths.

Runner Up: Space Capone

The funkiest, soulest scene kids who ever did live. I was shocked at what these guys did, and honestly, when I arrived mid-show, I thought that I was looking at a bunch of scene goons who had rushed the stage to lip sync and dance to a legit funk band. Oops. I apologize for doubting you, Sapce Capone.

Favorite Quote: "It comes so easy to the hardest working man in Nashville..."

Spoken by the too-cool-to-be-square, bespectacled sideman to the Dynamites' lead singer.

Other Shows I Saw:

Heypenny - They added horns this time and got rid of the video screens, and I think they went 1-for-2 on those choices. The video screens were cool, but disallowed the kind of freedom that their frenetic pop output demands. The horns made them sound a little like a ska outfit, and that, to me, is just about never a good thing. Lead singer Ben may have been a little over the top/intentionally quirky, but bassist DJ's honest-to-goodness effusiveness balanced the ticket.

Umbrella Tree - This one made me hurt. It's clear that they're good musicians, but they're one of those weird-for-the-sake-of-being-weird bands that I just can't stand. In the words of a good friend and bona fide music historian, "If you start out trying to be unique, you're in trouble."

The Dirty Guv'nahs - I was won over during sound check by the lead singer's older-than-his-age blues pipes. I was lost almost as quickly by his younger-than-his-voice, spastic stage presence. Good songs, but the players weren't quite tight enough, and background vocals often were an (out of tune) afterthought. All of these things will average themselves out and the Guv'nahs will be a truly decent blues/southern rock band in the next few years. I'll look forward to it.

The Armed Forces - Not being a punk aficionado, but having listened to my fair share of the Ramones, et al, I can only say that this was ballsy punk, and I really enjoyed the show.

How I Became The Bomb - I first saw them at Cannery during last year's NBN, and have now seen them thrice. I think this was a step down on the overall experience chart from the first show I saw, but the first show was possibly distorted by my elation at having found a local band that sounded like them. Anyway, the show was solid, and many loyal fans were in attendance. Their stage presence is excellent, as is their writing. Lead vocals are always delivered ably and entertainingly.

See you next fall, NBN.