I have long claimed that Exit/In is far and away my favorite venue in Nashville. After 1 year, 3 months, and 23 days, I walked down Elliston Place with the great anticipation of entering the hallowed grounds of Exit/In for the first time since before the pandemic. It was like seeing a childhood friend you haven’t seen in years, but you pick up like you just saw each other the day before. That is how I felt walking through those doors for the first time in a long time.
I went to see an up and coming artist named Notelle that I honestly knew nothing about going in. I left wanting to scream to the world that Nashville is so much more than country music and that the female music scene in Music City is in really good hands.
I arrived just as another artist I did not know was taking the stage. The show’s opener was a petite young woman with a whispery voice named A.G. Sully. Immediately after making myself comfortable in the balcony of the venue, my eyes and ears became fixated on Sully. The alternative R&B singer kept the energetic crowd glued to her every word as she performed songs off of her album Space to Think that was released in April of this year.
Easily the highlight of her set was when she ventured into the middle of the packed floor accompanied only by an acoustic guitar player and began to sing with no microphone. Powered only by her own natural voice, Sully captivated and impressed the crowd, which we know in Nashville is no easy task considering how self-indulgent Nashville crowds can be. A.G. Sully made at least one new fan at the show and her album has been on repeat ever since. The easy to sing along “FOMO” was another exceptional number from a night filled with them.
I turned to my wife after A.G.’s set was complete and said to her, “I feel sorry for who has to follow her.” Let me tell you that the following artist does not know what the word intimidation means. Things went from sweet and intimate with Sully to dark and really intimate with the arrival of dark-pop artist Talia Stewart. Stewart, backed by a guitarist and drummer dressed in red jumpsuits, took the stage wearing the dress her mother wore to her winter formal when she was younger, and blazed through a set featuring songs heavily set in breakups.
Through her first few numbers, I was getting Nelly Furtado “I’m Like a Bird” vibes through her songs and vocals, but that quickly changed when Talia left the stage and returned minutes later clad in black chaps and a matching bra and booty short set and tore through a mesmerizing rendition of Rihanna’s “Bitch Better Have My Money.” At this point, she had the extremely diverse crowd eating out of the palm of her hand. Talia talked about the importance her mother played in her songwriting and how she would not be on the Exit/In stage without the love and support of her manager Taylor Stone. Before leaving the stage, Talia was able to show her appreciation to Stone by singing her “Happy Birthday” with the help of the crowd.
The energy at Exit/In was surging after Stewart left the stage and it was up to the headliner Notelle to keep it up and send everyone home happy. One of music’s best kept secrets was revealed as nightmare-pop singer-songwriter Notelle closed the show along with pole dancers from East Nashville’s The Chrome Bar. Notelle began her set with her eerie cover of classic doo-wop song “Life Could Be a Dream.” Her cover of The Chords classic should be prominently used in every independent horror film made from here on out, much like Sonic Youth’s cover of The Carpenter’s “Superstar.” From there, she invited one of the dancers to take the stage to dance on a large brass pole that sat on the stage while she transitioned to one of her originals. For the past week leading up to the show, I immersed myself into Notelle’s music to make myself more familiar with her work. I was blown away by how her music translated live. It was one of those rare moments in seeing an artist live and thinking how much more you enjoyed her live than recorded. This is not me saying that her recorded music is lacking, but rather a compliment to how good of a live performer she is.
Notelle’s set was the shortest of the night and it clearly left me wanting to hear so much more of her. Nashville Scene named her a “Must Watch Artist in 2020” and from someone who worked as a radio, club, and strip club DJ in a previous life, I was very happy to hear that the dark industrial sound I loved so much in the ‘90s is finding life again in artists like Notelle. Everything about her set just screamed of someone who knows who they are as an artist from the stage lighting to the addition of pole dancers. At first, I thought the dancers might take over the crowd’s attention, but it was nearly impossible to take your eyes off a budding superstar even if half-naked women are dancing on a pole mere feet away.
My return to Exit/In, after what felt like eternity, left a massive smile on my face. I was happy to be back in my favorite venue, but most importantly, I felt so blessed to be apart of an audience that got to see three amazing young and promising female artists completely own the stage. The non-country music scene is alive and thriving in Nashville and needs your support. Live music in Music City is officially back, so if you’re finding this article before you come to visit, understand that the music does not stop where Broadway ends, but only gets better and louder as you leave the tourist trap that is downtown Nashville.
Steven McCash is the Music Columnist for SoBros Network, and host of the ‘Drinking With…’ podcast. He is the pioneer of New Music Friday, highlighting each week’s new releases in the world of music, in addition to the occasional live show review. Follow on Twitter: @MC_Cash75
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