Category Archives: TVD Memphis

The Scruffs, Memphis pioneers of power pop, play SXSW this Saturday, March 17th at Tenoak Lounge in Austin.

Founded by lead songwriter, singer, and guitarist Stephen Burns, The Scruffs recorded the classic cult album, 1977’s Wanna Meet the Scruffs? at Ardent Studios in Memphis. Critical acclaim followed, much the same as fellow Memphians Big Star, and a second album was recorded, 1979’s Teenage Gurls.

Today, March 13th, sees the release of a new record, Kill! Kill! The Scruffs which is perhaps the best of the band to date. Featuring the tracks ”Too Much Love,”and “Kill! Kill!,” the LP was recorded and mixed at Ardent and mastered at Abbey Road Studios in London. This is pure pop music at its best.

Kill! Kill! also overflows with many fantastic guest contributions, from famous folks like Bobby Kildea (Belle & Sebastian) and Peter Buck (R.E.M.) to ace local players Al Gamble (The City Champs, John Paul Keith & The One Four Fives), John Whittemore (Neighborhood Texture Jam, Jack O & The Tennessee Tearjerkers), and Jake and Toby Vest (Tiger High).

E.J. Friedman—the author of loudersoft—is a music blogger, artist manager, social media whiz, songwriter, and all-around Renaissance Man. 

A native Memphian, he’s also lived in NYC, Seattle, Los Angeles, and more. But here’s the point: every music community needs an E.J.; a scene needs a connector. Someone who makes, shares, promotes, engages, debates, and fervently, publicly, loves music for a living. Someone who invests in what’s going on around him. Someone who goes out to a show at midnight on Monday and blogs about it at 8AM on Tuesday. Someone who can start the conversation, or advance it, or elevate it. If you’re lucky, your music scene has an E.J. Friedman. Memphis is lucky to have ours.

So, enjoy Another Cup of Coffee with E.J. Friedman!

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I really hope you’re best friends with Red Bull, all too familiar with 5 Hour Energy, or own a portable expresso machine that you carry around your neck, ’cause this weekend will have you busy running around and listening to an insane amount of great music.

From fantastic local representation to artists with world-wide recognition, these next three days are gonna punch you in the face through your eardrums… and it’s gonna be amazing.

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This past Saturday, hometown hero Cities Aviv, in tandem with the chic chick rap duo Dark Sister, set up an appealing off-kilter hip hop show. The evening acted as a launch platform for Cities to explode into SXSW, as well as gave Dark Sister a voice for their ironic rap.

Their sets were fantastic and successfully crowd pleasing, but the building blocks to the night’s highest point were stacked on the shoulders of openers Persona La Ave and Rimar, with their respective takes on modern-day beats with throwback inspiration.

Hosted at everyone’s favorite show spot, The HiTone Cafe, the night hit an early stride on strong legs. Persona La Ave opened up the evening by literally working out of a suitcase that housed his equipment. Persona has a huge leaning towards dance trends circa the late 1980s-90s, and it showed with his drum and synthesizer tones.

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Geez, it’s been a while since Newby’s has had a decent band in. Tonight, Ohio’s Lovedrug will be there, making their way to Austin for SXSW.

Their new record, Wild Blood, came out this week. I loved their first full-length Pretend You’re Alive and it looks like this record is somewhat of a return to form. Dig it!

Due to Newby’s incredible website and the Lovedrug site’s lack of details, I have no idea what time the show is, but I’m guessing it’s around 9 or so. Cost? Same situation, but I’d guess about 10 bucks. And, I think Newby’s is usually 21+.

Don’t forget to check out Wild Blood on store shelves now!

*EDIT: Got the details for the show… all ages, 7:30 pm, $10 advance/$12 at the door. Go!

This Saturday night, the Hi-Tone will host a benefit show for the best local radio station we’ve got, WEVL 89.9 FM.

WEVL is a badass, completely listener-supported station that’s been adding to Memphis culture for over 35 years. This benefit will host John Paul Keith and the 1, 4, 5’s alongside Jimbo Mathus & The Tri-State Coalition.

Whether you realize it or not, you benefit from this station being in our town. If you haven’t ever listened to WEVL, you can tune in next time you’re in your car or listen online. Check it out! 9pm, $10, all ages.

Hey friends! How was your February? You don’t want to talk about it? Well, I understand, and so does our mutual pal March. Bringing in warm weather and good vibes isn’t all the third month of the year is good for. March is going to be a crazy great month for Memphis music—let’s dive right in start things off right!

This Friday (3/2) is going to rip things off with some crispy fresh tunage. Native rapper turned national success Cities Aviv will be taking the stage at The Hi Tone Cafe. Mr. Aviv won’t be alone; fellow local girl rap duo Dark Sister will be supporting and promoting their October release Swag Hag. Knoxville’s off-funk act Persona La Ave and the smooth beats of Rimar will also be pumping the evening full of endorphins and music you’d hate yourself for missing—so be sure not to!

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Guys, we live in exciting times. The past ten years have seen a rapidly moving renaissance in the field of instrumental electronic music. Genres like instrumental hip-hop, underground electronica, post rock, organic electronica, and many more have all begun openly trading techniques and concepts with each other in a sort of Mr. Potato Head pick-and-choose manner of composition, which leads sounds or genres to be defined and detailed on an artist-by-artist basis.

Here in Memphis, Oxford Icebergs are putting a unique spin on the kick/snare game by throwing popular beat production convention to the wind.

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This past week in Memphis has been gigantic. The Folk Alliance Conference has brought through a slew of talented musicians and artists to our fair city. But what if you weren’t able to attend? No worries, even when there’s a huge event that’s claiming the title of talk of the town, Memphis has got you covered with plenty of other options.

If you weren’t fortunate enough to attend the Folk Alliance Conference, Friday (2/24) is the perfect dose of relief as some local heavy hitters team up with an underground icon at a Memphis hot spot. Grace Askew and her southern drawl will share an evening with Chris Milam’s sugary sweet acousta-pop at Otherlands Coffeebar in the heart of midtown.

But that’s not all! Blaze Foley: Duct Tape Messiah will be performing with his dry and overtly honest guitar music for all ears in attendance.

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A good record is a melting pot of a lot of things. You’ve got your bread and butter in the musicians and composers. Then, you’ve got the salt and pepper with recording and mixing engineers. But there’s always that extra spice that so many have trouble putting their finger which can make the dish magical. In the case of recorded music, that secret ingredient is mastering.

This past week, I had the chance to sit down with Kevin Nix—one of Memphis’ most prolific mastering engineers about his work, history, and the magic he puts into every song.

Mastering Engineer Kevin Nix is half of L. Nix Mastering. The company name is derived from Kevin’s father, Larry Nix, who started out as the house mastering engineer at STAX Records. When Stax closed its doors in 1975, Larry opened shop in Ardent Studios. He’s mastered countless records over the last 40 years. In 1994, Larry brought his son Kevin on board. Together, they are one of the most sought-after engineering teams in the world. A recent client list includes Three Six Mafia, Lucero, North Mississippi All Stars, Huey Lewis and the News, Big Star, and The Bo-Keys (to just name a few).

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Nashville songstress Katie Herzig will bring her beautiful voice to the Hi-Tone stage Friday night, the 24th. Herzig has been going nowhere but up since her debut back in 2004, and with her latest record, The Waking Sleep, released in September of last year and a few high profile song placements, it looks like that rise will only continue.

I was first introduced to Katie when I was living in Nashville, playing for another female songwriter. We played Katie’s release show for her 2008 album Apple Tree. I remember being really blown away at the talent on stage that evening. And her voice was unbelievable. It didn’t hurt that close to the end of the show, she had a slice of freshly-baked apple pie brought to each person in the packed venue.

Don’t miss Katie’s great songs and beautiful voice Friday night. It’s an early show…7pm, all ages, $10/$12. Robby Hecht and Sandra McCracken will open. Robby is in Memphis playing the Folk Alliance International Showcase downtown this week. If you have a conference badge you can get into the show for free.

The 7th Annual MUSIC VIDEO SHOWCASE is March 1st-4th!

Live From Memphis has just announced the largest Music Video Showcase ever! 57 music videos in 4 screenings, 4 art openings, 3 panels, 3 mini-music showcases, 3 parties all in ONE awesome weekend!

The 7th Annual Music Video Showcase will be presenting music videos from local, national, and international musicians and filmmakers. Bands include Don Trip, Snowglobe, The National, The Lost Sounds, North Mississippi Allstars, Eleanor Friedberger (of The Fiery Furnaces), Goyte, Memphis Dawls, Youth Lagoon, and so many more!

Music Videos will screen Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at The Warehouse (36 E. GE Patterson). For a complete list of the videos and screening times visit MusicVideoShowcase.com.

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Back in 1951, Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats recorded “Rocket 88” at Sun Studios with song composer Ike Turner on keyboards. One of their amps was broken, which led to the guitar sounding distorted. This song is almost universally known as the first rock and roll song, leading the studio to claim status as the birthplace of rock & roll. The studio recorded many of rock’s earliest pioneers including Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, Charlie Feathers, Ray Harris, Warren Smith, Charlie Rich, and Jerry Lee Lewis.

Victor Bernabe, a tour guide at Sun Studios, would be able to tell you this story. Tour guides at the legendary Memphis studio are revered as local musicologists and guide visitors on over 600,000 tours a year.

Additionally, Bernable, who is better known by his DJ name Memphis Vic, likes to spin records on his Tectonics turntable system with a Pioneer mixer. He is originally from California and loves collecting records, hitting as many flea markets as possible just to buy vinyl. We wanted to share with you the records that this local music historian recordmends.

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This Saturday night, local duo Deering & Down will release their new record Out There Somewhere at a show at the Hi-Tone. The two promise some special Memphis musical guests to accompany them throughout the night.

They did the new record at Willie Mitchell’s Royal Studio here in town; Mitchell even helped with horn arrangements before his death two years ago. Willie’s son, Boo, co-produced the album with the band.

You can check out some of the tracks from the new album over on the band’s SoundCloud. Looks like the show will be a lot of fun with all the guests, so come on out and support the best soul/r&b duo in town. Doors at 8:30. $5/18+

Hey weekend warriors! Are you ready for another battle? This trio of terrific evenings is sure to energize your feet through your ears to get you grooving. Get ready for some great excuses to ditch your obligations and get knee deep in some great live tunes.

Thursday (2/16) will get things going in the right direction with O.A.R. at Minglewood Hall! Of a Revolution will be bringing their relaxed pop-rock to the Memphis venue. Added support comes from the very able Stephen Kellogg & The Sixers. This Thursday will give you plenty of reason to dance silly silly and groove to some low-key but still rocking tunes.

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