Archives For larry kloess

The Colourist Unveil ‘We Won’t Go Home’ / Live at the High Watt Tonight

Cause A Scene —  March 19, 2014 — Leave a comment

The Colourist Promo

As far as American buzz bands go these days, it’s hard to find a band with much more than the Orange County-based indie pop act The Colourist. After scoring a major placement with AT&T / Nokia with their irresistibly catchy single “Little Games”, the band is gearing up for their debut full-length album release next Tuesday. While a whole host of bands jockey for position in the indie/electronic pop world, The Colourist seems poised to break away from the pack with their more straightforward (see: less tracks, more instrumentation), no-gimmicks approach and their instantly danceable songs.

Ahead of their album release, they’ve dropped a video for the sun-drenched, sure-to-be-summer-anthem “We Won’t Go Home” that isn’t hard to imagine being played over and over throughout the warmer months. And good news for fans of the band in Nashville: They play TONIGHT at the High Watt with Night Terrors of 1927 and The Wind + The Wave, two bands that had no trouble standing out at this year’s SXSW. If you’re anywhere in Nashville tonight, be sure to catch these fast-rising acts starting at 8:00!

– Larry Kloess

 

In Daily Discovery ,
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Video Premiere: Cardboard Kids, “Dime A Time Lover”

Cause A Scene —  March 4, 2014 — Leave a comment

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For some bands, it takes a career to prove that they have the chops to prove they know what rock ‘n roll is all about. For recent Nashville transplants Cardboard Kids, it takes them just over two and a half minutes to cement their status as one of Nashville’s most promising young rock acts.

“Dime A Time Lover”, the second single from the band’s upcoming debut release Echo Boomer (out May 20) brings a soulful, garage rock swagger from start to finish that feels at once immediate but brings a fresh sound not often heard from Nashville acts, except maybe from a certain Mr. White at Third Man Records.

The track opens with a repetitive, hypnotic guitar riff from Austin Cunningham before front man Jake Germany hooks the listener in with his soulful swagger and infectious melodies, with the incomparable Ruby Amanfu making her presence felt on background vocals.

The highlight of the whole track, though, is about 1:30 of the way through when the song propels forward with Cunningham and drummer Brandon McFarlin’s wall of sound takes over and turns this into all-out rock anthem, and a gem of a “garage soul” song for the dancing crowd.

With spring just around the corner, and with Cardboard Kids set to release Echo Boomer into the wild this May, this band seems like one who is poised to take over your car’s stereo speakers this summer with windows down and the volume turned all the way up.

If you’re looking to catch these guys live, you’ll get your chance this Sunday night at the Basement for a free show also featuring Golden Youth, Coyote Talk, Sam Hunter, and Everyman.

– Larry Kloess

In New Releases , ,
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Judah & The Lion Debut Video for “Sweet Tennessee”

Cause A Scene —  August 27, 2013 — Leave a comment

Judah & The Lion

 

I learned something really early on in my friendship with Nashville’s newest Americana-folk buzz band, Judah & the Lion: When these guys play a show, people show up en masse. When I booked them for a showcase in January, I had no idea what to expect from the show. I had heard their first EP, First Fruits, and enjoyed it, and had heard buzz around Belmont’s campus, but on that warmer-than-usual mid-week night in January, nothing could have prepared me for the 250+ people that packed into Red Earth Trading Co’s pop-up shop in Hillsboro Village for an old-fashioned big tent revival. After curating nearly 30 shows over the first year of Cause A Scene, we had our fair share of bands play our shows. Judah & the Lion on that night seemed to transcend them all, with a sound and performance that made it seem impossible for that show to really be one of the very first shows they had ever played.

Since then, I’ve seen them garner quite a bit of attention and well-warranted praise from their latest EP, Sweet Tennessee, with the six-track album rising to #1 on iTunes Singer/Songwriter charts and breaking the Top 25 overall on the same platform. This week, Judah & the Lion released their brand-new video for the title track of the album, and it seems to simply reinforce the magic that this band has on stage and the fact that wherever this band plays, crowds tend to show up and fill the room. It’s a trend that shows no signs of changing anytime soon.

If you’re in Nashville, there’s a few chances to catch the band live, first at the Americana Music Festival in mid-September, again at Musician’s Corner in Centennial Park on October 12, and finally in November opening for Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors at the Cannery Ballroom. Something tells me that the vast majority of the fans and friends in this video will be at all three.

– Larry Kloess

In Causing A Scene ,
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Daily Discovery: Matthew and the Atlas – ‘Everything That Dies’

Cause A Scene —  August 1, 2013 — Leave a comment

Matthew and the Atlas Promo

It almost seems unfair to call Matthew and the Atlas‘ new single Everything That Dies a “daily discovery” as he’s been a Cause A Scene favorite since 2009 and played a sold out house show last November, but this track has the self-assurance and rawness of Matthew Hegarty turning over a brand new leaf. As his chorus washes over you it feels like a rebirth even: “You said everyone you know one day will surely die. But everything that dies in some way returns”

On his first two EPs, “To The North” and “Kingdom Of Your Own”, there was certainly a warm richness felt throughout Matthew’s raw, folk ballads, sounding right at home around a campfire with your best friends. They were albums that could seemingly stoke the fire in your heart to keep you warm through long, brutal winter months.

Everything That Dies is an entirely different animal. The track slowly builds momentum from its ominous opening over the course of four and a half minutes. The most striking feature is the lack of acoustic instruments on a song by an artist known for his folk and Americana sensibilities. This may sound like a stretch to pull off, but Matthew and his backing back pull it off without a hitch.

When Matthew played in our living room late last fall, it was readily apparent that with the sheer amount of heart and force behind his singing that he possessed a sound for much bigger stages. If Everything That Dies and the forthcoming debut LP are any indication, there’s a great chance we’ll be cashing our chips on that bet very soon.

– Larry Kloess

In Daily Discovery ,
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Best Songs of 2013, So Far…

Cause A Scene —  July 18, 2013 — Leave a comment

Best Music 2013 First Half

 

If there are two things true of Cause A Scene, it’s that 1) we are constantly scouring the internet for new, fresh music and 2) that we don’t post on nearly enough of it. We’re working diligently on fixing that second part as Cause A Scene goes through a rebranding process and adds several new writers and contributors the blog soon.

In the meantime, there has been a lot of great music released in the first half of 2013 that deserves your listening ears and is worth paying attention to. We’ve compiled some of our favorite songs released so far from everyone from the ubiquitous Daft Punk, Dawes and The Civil Wars to brand new up-and-comers Dustin Tebbutt, Gambles and The Mariner’s Children. Along the way, you’ll see many Cause A Scene house show alums like David Ramirez, Radiation City, Rebecca Roubion and Penny & Sparrow. All told, there is something for everyone on this mix, and we guarantee there will be plenty of new discoveries to complement some familiar favorites.

So as a way to say “thanks” for all the great support this year, we present to you, the Best Songs of 2013, So Far. We hope you enjoy!

In Spotify Playlists ,
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