Meet taped: Nashville’s Internet Venue

Posted Fri December 8, 2023

Every so often, a new video performance series comes along and offers up a bounty of insightful, entertaining and inspiring takes. You may recall The Lake Fever Sessions, Live at Josh’s House, Monkey Riot Q Sessions, Found Sound, On Tape, House Show or even some We Own This Town sessions. At their very core, each of these provide the same function – giving a platform for an artist to perform – but it’s the distinctive spin that each puts on that mission that make them so compelling.

Recently, taped came on to the scene and describes themselves as an “internet venue.” Furthermore, they seek to be “a series of sessions looking to showcase upcoming artists with high quality performance video” and from the looks of their first offerings, they’re killing it. The Lily Ophelia video is a beautiful projection paired with the delicate performance, while the Baby Wave session combines lo-fi gritty shots with high quality slow pans that any horror film maker would appreciate. The Fauster session is equally as diverse; a series of clean shots within a very well curated setting, no fuss, no muss, all enjoyment.

Now the time to get in on the ground floor. Go follow @taped.sessions and subscribe on YouTube, your future self will thank you.

The One With the Confinement Nurse

Posted Wed December 6, 2023 from Momcult

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Joy and Sarah and joined by Tabitha Ong-Tune. Having originally not planned on having children, she walks us through how that changed, her difficultly getting pregnant, and the birth of her son that put her life in jeopardy.

About our guest
Tabitha Ong Tune is a middle-aged mom to a young child in Nashville, TN. When not helping hospitality businesses and creatives navigate social media, you’ll find her voraciously consuming food, coffee and pop-culture; she loves too many tv shows and movies to list, and will talk your ear off about Hamilton: An American Musical. Born and raised in Singapore, Tabitha credits her current residence (and surname) to her Nashville native husband.

Follow Momcult on Instagram @momcultpodcast.

The Martini Episode with Jeremiah Jason Blake

Posted Wed November 22, 2023 from Liquid Gold

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Hosts Mike Wolf and Kenneth Dedmon are joined by cocktail master and Martini maestro Jeremiah Jason Blake, formerly of the Vesper Club for an exploration into the timeless beverage. They discuss the mysterious origins of the drink, give plenty of recipes and techniques, and talk about the art of layering ice. Variations on the Martini are discussed as well: the Vesper, the Marguerite, the Tuxedo and the Martinez. They touch on filmmaker Luis Buñuel’s essay on the Martini and famous writer MFK Fisher’s article in The Atlantic from 1949 are dug up in the research. Also covered: was James Bond an alcoholic, cooking with vermouth, and inter-office memos telling the terrors of the Martini in late 60’s Manhattan.

Happy Thanksgiving from Liquid Gold!

Cheer: A Liquid Gold Holiday Drinking Guide is available now! Pick up a copy ASAP!

Music by Upright T-Rex Music.
Logo by Jess Machen

High Strangeness with Leigh Nash

Posted Wed November 22, 2023 from Momcult

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The girls are stoked to be joined by singer/songwriter Leigh Nash! You may know her from her hit song “Kiss Me” by Sixpence none the Richer. She is currently on the road guesting for 10’000 Maniacs in attempts to survive being an empty-nester. Joy has to rearrange the nursery and Sarah is tired of being the bad cop. Leigh shares the anxiety she felt during pregnancy, the ebb and flow of motherhood and her fascination for Goblins. She’s also still looking for her placenta. If found, please reach out.

About our guest
For nearly 25 years Leigh Nash’s instantly recognizable voice has been a fixture in modern pop, from her days as frontwoman for Sixpence None The Richer to her more recent offerings as a songwriter and solo recording artist.

Rooted in Americana sounds that previously underscored albums like 2015’s The State I’m In (her first Top 40 hit on Billboard’s country chart), The Tide, Vol. 1 found Nash collaborating with icons like Vince Gill and Tanya Tucker, gospel singer CeCe Winans, Raul Malo, Stephen Wilson Jr., Matt Maher and the Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Ruby Amafu.

The record also earned Nash her first appearance at the Grand Ole Opry, marking another milestone for a lifelong musician who recorded platinum-certified hits like “Kiss Me” while in her early twenties. She is currently on the road fronting 10,000 Maniacs and working on a new Sixpence record.

Follow Momcult on Instagram @momcultpodcast.

Ambient Country goes Nashville Ambient

Posted Thu November 16, 2023

For those that don’t know, SUSS is an ambient country trio out New York. One member of said group, Bob Holmes, has a podcast entitled Ambient Country in which he is joined by a co-host to explore a wide range of instrumental music. In this episode he takes a slightly different tact and interviews a wide range of instrumental music makers here in Nashville – including Luke Schneider, Hammock, Rich Ruth, Eve Maret, Belly Full of Stars, Joseph Allred, Gray Worry and more.

It’s a great listen; full stop. Nashville has a very strong instrumental music scene and Holmes has done a good job of talking to many of those involved with it. If it’s not a part of Nashville you’re familiar with, dive in ASAP. If you feel you already know the scene, take some time to appreciate the insights from all the artists interviewed; all of which are quite thoughtful and supportive of the scene.

Hot Toddy Season 6 Premiere with Sophia Brand

Posted Fri November 10, 2023 from Liquid Gold

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Liquid Gold kicks off Season 6 with an exploration of the drink of the season, the Hot Toddy. Hosts Mike and Kenneth are joined by new voice of the show Sophia Brand, exploring different methods of preparation and the history of the cold-weather classic. They enjoy their own Rye Hot Toddy on the program, made with the new Nelson Brothers Rye Whiskey. Then they discuss British tea traditions and methods with Sophia, the Queen and Colonel Sanders, and the culture shock regarding her move stateside years ago. For Booze News, Kenneth discusses Kate Middleton’s ridiculously named new cocktail, her real favorite beverage, 5,000 year old wine discovered in Egypt, provides a very short update on celebrity booze adventures, and the tale of the ghost that forced someone to do three shots of whiskey. Bonus recipe: Mezcal Hot Toddies all around.

Cheer: A Liquid Gold Holiday Drinking Guide is available now! Pick up a copy ASAP!

Music by Upright T-Rex Music.
Logo by Jess Machen

All My Eggs in One Basket with Lindsey Rhodes

Posted Wed November 8, 2023 from Momcult

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Hot yoga instructor and wellness coach, Lindsey Rhodes shares her complicated and traumatic experience with IVF. She discusses what she wishes she would have been prepared for from selecting a sperm donor to the shots and regiment, to the miscarriages. If you are considering IVF or know someone who is, this episode is for you!

About our guest:
Lindsey Rhodes is a Yoga instructor at Hot Yoga East Nashville. She has lived in Nashville for 10 years and is in a queer same-sex marriage with 2 children! Alongside her yoga teachings, she is a holistic food and wellness coach. She has a love for cooking, reading, thrifting and music and while she considers herself an extrovert, she definitely needs her alone time.

Follow Momcult on Instagram @momcultpodcast.

Nu Mangos – “Baby’s On Fire”

Posted Tue November 7, 2023

There’s a certain flavor of cover song that rides a razor thin line between capturing the magic of the original and adding plenty of new flair. Failure’s cover of “Enjoy the Silence,” Blondie’s “Hanging on the Telephone,” and Fugee’s “Killing Me Softly With His Song” are all excellent examples of being faithful to the original but feeling definitively belonging to the artist. It’s not an easy trick to pull off but a good cover is an open door both the original artist and the covering artist. Win Win.

Brian Eno’s 1974 release Here Come the Warm Jets is one of those esteemed albums that’s damn near untouchable. His legacy as a producer just further concretes how well regarded he has been for the past fifty years. Covering a track from the Eno’s catalog certainly isn’t unheard of but you better do something interesting with it! Fortunately, Nu Mangos (in collab with Tennessee Muscle Candy) understood the assignment and this cover of “Baby’s On Fire” checks all the right boxes. It has the glam swagger of the original but eschews the original guitars for beats, synths and samples. It’s every bit as mesmerizing as the original but in a far more dance-able form.

It was a bold move and I’d say it paid off. This one is going in the regular rotation.

BeHoward – “Both Sides (Interlude)” (Official Video)

Posted Mon November 6, 2023

A quick note about BeHoward; if you haven’t heard his collaboration album with Fu Stan, Claude & Ray, start there. Better yet, just watch the Dope Boy video. It’s a serious dose of hip-hop but it’s also, intentionally, ridiculous.

This brand new single, “Both Sides (Interlude),” continues that thread a little bit. This is BeHoward collaborating with BeHoward – sharing the screen, swapping verses in very different styles and keeping it all peppered with a great deal of style and amusement. It’s not silly but it is a damn fun time. Keep your ears glued to the lyrics for the real gems.

Instagram tells us this is part an upcoming album; looking forward to it whenever those details emerge.

Six One Tribe – “Spirit Week” / “Backstreets” (Official Video)

Posted Mon November 6, 2023

I assume at this point in time that Six One Tribe needs no introduction but here’s a quick primer just in case you still haven’t heard of the award winning collective representing the sound of Nashville hip-hop through collaborative albums and individual solo outings. That’s it, that’s Six One Tribe. Last time I checked there were upwards of sixteen members, each contributing their own unique voice and style to the overall sound.

There’s two huge hurdles that Six One Tribe faces whenever they drop new music. First, they’re openly working to represent the entire city’s contributions to a wildly diverse genre. How does it stack up? Secondly, there are sixteen members! Are they creating a platform to showcase each voice or crafting a specific song; leveraging the strengths of each emcee to create something unique.. as per question number one. These are very lofty goals to achieve and this latest set of videos for “Spirit Week / Backstreets” does a great job of answering both of them.

“Spirit Week” is just a scant 30-seconds but not one ounce of it is throwaway. It’s subjective but Corduroy Clemens flow always hits me the right way; you can often hear the wry grin coming through his lyrics. I don’t know the story behind the beat but the drumline and choral cheers are downright historic in the context of TSU. That’s a lot to extract from half a minute but it’s all there.

“Backstreets” is the prime attraction here; featuring HB Mandella, Blvck Wizzle, Negro Justice, Namir Blade, Gee Slab, and Riø Tokyo. A lazier group would just run the same beat the entire time, putting all the focus on the distinct vocal styles but Six One Tribe is not a lazy group. Each emcee gets their verse and the backing track morphs expertly to support them. By the time Namir Blade starts crooning, the track has morphed through four different movements; threading the needle expertly to never once feel disparate.

At this point in time, Six One Tribe has won a great deal of accolades but it can be hard to know where to start with them. With two full-length records and at least a dozen solo records, there’s a lot of material to earth. This track is an excellent entry point to pique your interest to dive further into Reset for the Rejects, their latest release.

Let’s talk about HR Lexy

Posted Wed November 1, 2023

A few years ago, I walked into The Basement to see The Mute Group play a set with Fable Cry and HR Lexy. All three acts were known for putting on a spectacle of a show but I was not prepared for what I saw with HR Lexy. No shade to The Mute Group or Fable Cry – their flavor of spectacle was a treat as well – but HR Lexy was performing songs from ART OVEREGO and it was entrancing. This 2019 video from Mercy Lounge will give you an inkling of what I witnessed but no recording could put you in the same headspace.

Fast forward to 2023; I’ve had the great fortune to see HR Lexy play a few shows in support of the new record Every Scar is an Open Door. Vocalist Arlene Sparacia performs in a red shroud, obscuring her face but demanding your attention. The songs are otherworldly but catchy. Alien but memorable. Or, at least, that’s how my brain remembers them. You see, the songs aren’t available to stream anywhere, aren’t for sale on Bandcamp and can only be heard in person or on CD.. purchased at a show. It’s a rather old fashioned way of enjoying music – in person or in your own mind.

That is, until they press a vinyl record of it. Over on GoFundMe, there is a fundraising campaign to help them put the record on wax; a permanent totem of their creations and an excellent keepsake. It’s frustrating not to be able to hear the HR Lexy songs online at the click of a button but I applaud the technique. The songs are spellbinding. The wait may be difficult but it’s assuredly worth it.

HR Lexy has done an excellent job of building demand for what they do – a feat that took years of inspired music videos, honest to god fashion and true performance art to get there. It’s been a helluva thing to watch mature over time and I, for one, am extremely intrigued by what’s in store with Every Scar is an Open Door. So, please join me supporting the record.

Safari Room – “Groundhog Day” / “You Are a Ghost” (DZ Session Premiere)

Posted Tue October 31, 2023

Honored to present a double premiere from Safari Room! Not only are these two tracks new to everyone’s ears but they’re live versions from a DZ Records session recorded at Drkmttr. Safari Room has been gearing up to unleash their third full-length on the world in early 2024 and this will be the sixth and seventh song trickled out before the official release in February. You can hear the previously released tracks over here.

This premiere is happening on Halloween quite intentionally, as both songs tangle with topics fitting for the day. Frontman Alec Koukol tells us that “Groundhog Day” was written about the cycle of darkness when you’re told “things will look better in the morning” but they don’t look any better at all – you’re just right back in the same headspace. It’s a heavy topic but Safari Room wrangles it into a mesmerizing chant and psychedelic unfurling, complete with a repeated vocal plea to turn back time to before things were hard. The second track, “You Are a Ghost,” is a ballad about a relationship grown distant that explodes into a yearning for your partner to open up to move forward (with a helluva haunting bridge).

Both tracks strike an emotional nerve, forelorn and wistful for a previous place in time. If you follow the neopagan tradition of Samhain (from which modern Halloween draws many of its traditions) this is the time of year when the veil between the living world and the past are thinnest. You may not take that literally but it’s an opportunity to reflect and, possibly, deal with some of your own ghosts.

There are many additional Nashville DZ Sessions worth checking out but Safari Room should be your first stop. Koukol and gang make great use of the Drkmttr space, perform fitting songs for the moody lighting and provide a nice preview for their November 6th show opening for Another Michael & Lizdelise. Maybe if we ask real nice, we can get them to play both songs at the show.