Tonight’s festivities for Next Big Nashville are an easy choice as far as We Own This Town is concerned – Mercy Lounge party sponsored by Nashville Cream and Lake Fever Sessions. Aside from the fact that it’s obvious that we’re in the tank for both of the sponsors the lineup is undeniably good: Bad Cop, Elle Macho, Tristen, Non-Commissioned Officers and How I Became the Bomb have all been featured on previous podcasts – not to mention regular listenings on our own free time. So, if you find yourself desiring one destination tonight, Mercy Lounge is the place to be.

If you feel like being adventurous and doing some bar hopping here are some additional suggestions:

• 8:00 – hit up The Basement to catch The Carter Administration.
• 8:45 – make your way to Exit/In to see Shoot the Mountain – playing their second show as a 3-piece.
• 10:15 – The End has The Young Republic
• 11:30 – Umbrella Tree plays FooBar.. and any night that ends on the East Side is a good night indeed.

Keep in mind, that’s an alternate schedule.. I really can’t stress enough how enjoyable the show will be at Mercy Lounge tonight. Promise.

Before settling on your final schedule for Saturday you may want to check out this Infinity Cat Showcase Primer to get a bit of insight on who all is playing, what bands they’re from and what sort of sound to expect. I’ve not actually seen JEFF listed on any official documentation as playing but I’m fairly apt to believe Nashville’s Dead if they say they are going to be there.

Tonight’s We Own This Town pick for Next Big Nashville 2009 is Phosphorescent at The End with Alberta Cross, Caitlin Rose and Luke and The Late Nights. It’s a nice mix of quality local acts and an established national act playing in an intimate venue.. not sure what more you could ask for as a quality kickoff to this years Next Big festivities.

Follow us on Twitter for more insight on shows worth attending.

If it was somehow not abundantly clear already that Next Big Nashville 2009 has started today then, please, let me be the first to inform you that it has, indeed, started today. The four day festival seems to be chock full of activities this year and absolutely no shortage of bands playing. It will be somewhat overwhelming to say the very least but it’s all in support of establishing Nashville as more than just a country / singer-songwriter town and that’s a motive I think we can all get behind.

The show listings in the sidebar are a nice broad overview of the activities going on that we feel would be worth your time. However, it is physically impossible to attend all of them and you’ll still have to filter down to just a handful per night. Hopefully we can make some specific schedule recommendations that make ease any toiling over decision making.

Granted, Matt Mahaffey of Self is no longer a Nashville / Murfreesboro resident but it could be argued that there was a time that he was at the exact center of a particular ‘scene’ roughly a decade ago. If you’re not familiar with the history of his band, Spongebath Records or why Murfreesboro is important – I suggest you do some reading.

With that in mind it should be noted that Rock Sellout has just posted a new interview with him where some light is shed on what he’s been up to and what exactly it is that he plans to do next. He even compiled a Top Ten Self songs to pour over.