This weekend is set up to be an amazing one in middle Tennessee. There is so much live music to be heard over the weekend that it’s damn near impossible to keep up with it. The 21st annual AMERICANAFEST is already in swing in Nashville. Thousands of music fans will swarm music venues all over the city in a quest to hear some of the best folk, country, blues, and soul based music you can find. You can find the festival being played throughout the city at Centennial Park, Cannery Ballroom, High Watt, Mercy Lounge, Exit/In and so many other places.
There is enough music being played at AMERICANAFEST to hold one over for some time but that’s not where the music ends this weekend. Twenty minutes south of the of the sights and sounds of Broadway is an ever-growing music festival making its return after a one-year absence. Pilgrimage Festival in Franklin takes place Saturday and Sunday and will feature some of the biggest names in rock and country. The line-up includes headliners Dave Matthews Band and The Black Keys along with Maren Morris, Cage the Elephant, Amos Lee and Better Than Ezra.
If you are not ready to venture out and handle some of the big crowds that come with patronizing a festival but want to hear some great music, don’t fret. There is plenty of great new music out this week to please even the pickiest music lover.
YouTube sensation turned metal singer Poppy returns with her new album Flux. During her musical transformation the last few years fans have seen Poppy grow tremendously as an artist. She is clearly ahead of so many of her peers and it’s scary. Canadian singer-songwriter Alessia Cara drops her third album In the Meantime this week. The Grammy winner for Best New Artist in 2018 proves that she has so much more to show the world creatively. Heartbreak and the painful time spent getting over it are recurring themes on the record making her songwriting that much more relatable to her fans.
Japanese Breakfast who just released an album back in June is already back with new music. This time out the musician has ventured into the world of gaming by scoring the soundtrack for the indie video game Sable. A bit of a departure from most would expect from the singer Sable is primarily an instrumental score with her providing her lush vocals on a few songs including “Better the Mask” and “Glider.” Former Nashville actress turned singer Alicia Witt’s sophomore album The Conduit is released this week. Witt has been playing music for years even having a residency at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills. The incredibly talented pianist and songwriter channels her inner Carole King on The Conduit and other influences like Billy Joel and Paul Simon can be heard as well. The Urban Legend actress also has a book coming out next so be on the lookout for that as well.
Please make sure you push play on some of the other great albums out this week…
- School of X Dancing Through the Void
- X Ambassadors The Beautiful Liar
- Cold War Kids New Age Norms 3
- Badflower This Is How The World Ends
- Third Eye Blind Our Bande Apart
Steven McCash is the Lead Music Writer and Utility Man for SoBros Network. Steven is the host of the ‘Drinking With…’ podcast, and 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. He also pitches in as a Nashville lifestyle writer and football analyst (hence the ‘Utility Man’ title). Follow on Twitter: @MC_Cash75
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