Nashville has been a hotbed of pro wrestling for as long as I can remember in my nearly 39 years on this Earth. I can remember heading to shows at the Municipal Auditorium and at the fabled Nashville Fairgrounds as a kid back in the 90s. Promotions have come and gone throughout the years, offering a wide variety of styles in the Music City. Pro Wrestling Symphony is the latest to pick up the torch and run with it. Emanating from Brooklyn Bowl, their first show made for a nice blend of time-honored wrasslin’ and the contemporary indie style. It was quite an enjoyable way to spend a Sunday afternoon in Nashville, I must say.
I was stoked to see how wrestling would be presented in that venue. Brooklyn Bowl has become one of the trendiest music venues in town. But, wrestling? Let’s go. Being conveniently located in the Germantown area meant that we had an array of options for fine pre-show dining (or post-show dining if you need it after tossing back a few too many Bearded Irises like me). And, parking for a Sunday matinee was more than manageable ($13 for six hours in the lot across the street). Walking down the hallway, passing the bowling lanes, and wrapping around to see the ring serving as the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, I felt an immediate professional touch to the production.
That was evident throughout the afternoon. I love a six-match card. I love a tight two hours. Each match had its own time to breathe, allowing the talent plenty of time to shine. And, yes, I’m an old guy at heart – I absolutely loved that the show started at 2PM, and I was back at my home in Mount Juliet by 4:30PM. The crowd warmed up during the opening contest, but was red hot by the time the main event went on (we love a bar at a wrestling show). Production and atmosphere aside, this was just an A+ solid indie show.
In the main event, “The Code” Colby Carter outlasted Donovan Dijak in a battle of attrition that went nearly 20 minutes. You want to talk about a good old fashioned main event, this one felt like it. It was two warriors delivering haymaker after haymaker for the opportunity to close Pro Wrestling Symphony’s first show as the last man standing with the spotlight on him. Carter won with a Curb Stomp. Afterwards, Dijak offered a handshake as a sign of respect before exiting the ring and allowing Carter to receive his flowers from those in attendance.
Speaking of sportsmanship, just prior to the main event, Beef defeated Jeremiah Plunkett via disqualification after Plunkett hit Beef with the dreaded powder to the eyes. The match had been a real ass beater to that point before Plunkett decided to throw sportsmanship to the wayside. I’m curious to see if PWS management will reprimand Plunkett for his actions and if Beef will have an opportunity to earn a more decisive victory against Plunkett in the future.
The afternoon kicked off with tag team action that saw Kaia McKenna and Big Booty Judy beat The Collab (Shazza McKenzie and Laynie Luck). Adrian Thomas won a fast-paced scramble match, though the surprise of the afternoon was “The Iron Demon” Shane Mercer showing up post-match and attacking “The Chicano Kid” Alejandro. Freya The Slaya defeated Kaitland Alexis in impressive fashion, and Royal Prestige got the win over Fresh Air in a fun and exciting tag team contest. The show left me excited to see where this promotion will go from here. They’re set to return to Brooklyn Bowl on July 6th.
Via Press Release:
Pro Wrestling Symphony will return to Brooklyn Bowl with the Rise Up! event on July 6th. You can purchase tickets for the event here. Matches confirmed for the show include:
- Shane Mercer vs. Alejandro
- Kaia McKenna vs. Shazza McKenzie
- Violence Is Forever Open Challenge
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, third on Football & Other F Words, co-host of The Hot Read Podcast, analyst for Stacking The Inbox, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, the NFL Draft, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.
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