independent thoughts on alternative music
“There’s gonna be some pain in your life, that’s for sure,” begins “Pain,” a keyboard-heavy strut-tastic tune from TX Jelly, the glorious new album from Lonestar collective The Texas Gentleman. With their new album, released last week via New West Records, the perennial backing band has stepped squarely into center stage with TX Jelly, and we … Read more AN EXCLUSIVE PERFORMANCE from THE TEXAS GENTLEMEN
Nashville’s The Whistles & the Bells, alt-rock moniker of acclaimed singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Bryan Simpson, will release his sophomore LP Modern Plagues via New West Records on April 28th. Prior to launching The Whistles & the Bells, Simpson had already won substantial success as a bluegrass mandolinist, serving a seven-year, three-album stint with the acclaimed progressive-bluegrass quartet Cadillac Sky. … Read more AN EXCLUSIVE PERFORMANCE from THE WHISTLES & THE BELLS
Rocker Ron Gallo, who relocated his frenetic style and his giant curly hair to the Music City last year, has strong opinions about the state of cultural affairs. “It’s like everyone’s asleep these days, we’re all distracted, we’ve become drones, looking at screens, not thinking for ourselves. We are the problem, we just need to take responsibility … Read more AN EXCLUSIVE PERFORMANCE from RON GALLO
Nashville’s J. Marco made his solo debut with the release of his full-length album, Myth, in October. The album combines his love of punk and pop, as he pulls triple-duty writing, singing, and playing, fusing the genres together to create a a hard-hitting, buzzy, collection of tracks. A former member of the Nashville-based band New City Savages, Marco began … Read more AN EXCLUSIVE PERFORMANCE from J. MARCO
Folk-pop sister duo Lily & Madeleine, who recently finished a nationwide tour supporting Brett Dennen and accompanied Dawes for several shows in the United Kingdom, released their acclaimed record Keep It Together earlier this year via New West Records. Keep It Together, the pair’s third full-length album, makes a dynamic statement, one that is the sound of Lily and Madeleine asserting themselves as … Read more AN EXCLUSIVE PERFORMANCE from LILY & MADELEINE
HEY HEY HEY!! East of 8th has partnered with our friends at Premier Booking Enterprises to curate the indie rock n’ roll extravaganza of all indie rock n’ roll extravaganzas. Consisting of four Nashville rock outfits–SWEETTALKER, That’s My Kid, Down Boy, and Super Shaker–this lineup was hand-crafted with great care just for you, beloved readers. Each … Read more FRIDAY IS ONLY THREE DAYS AWAY, DON’T MISS THIS
Atlanta folk singer-songwriter Ben Cramer, who performs under the moniker Old Sea Brigade, released his debut self-titled EP this January. While Cramer was in town recently, we met at cozy local studio, Villain Place, where he played “Georgia”, a ballad from the EP, with a transfixing tenderness that gave us a serious case of the feels. SWOON. Without further ado, East of … Read more AN EXCLUSIVE PERFORMANCE from OLD SEA BRIGADE
We hung out in a garage (yes, a garage) with Murfreesboro, Tennessee’s resident blues/rock band, That’s My Kid, recently and they played a brand new song called “If I Was Your Man” just for you, beloved readers! The band has had a eventful year; they released an EP, TMK, Nashville’s bastion of independent radio, Lightning 100, … Read more AN EXCLUSIVE PERFORMANCE from THAT’S MY KID
Modern folk maestro Anthony D’Amato has been tearing up the highways touring in support of his brilliant album The Shipwreck From the Shore, his first with label New West Records. If you haven’t seen him perform live yet, you’re in luck–he’s still got plenty of dates left, and he’ll probably be in a town near you … Read more AN EXCLUSIVE PERFORMANCE FROM ANTHONY D’AMATO
Nashville-based soulful pop artist Charlie Oxford released his self-titled debut album last Friday; we were fortunate enough to snag some time with him recently, and he graciously performed his song “Speak Out” for us. So, without further ado, East of 8th presents “Speak Out” by Charlie Oxford. Enjoy it, y’all!