Seryn is a 5 piece band who calls Denton, Texas their home. When listening to the well layered textures of guitars, ukulele, accordion, bass, viola, banjo and various percussion, it’s hard to imagine This Is Where We Are is the band’s debut effort. The band’s strength resides in their vast musical talent and understanding of dynamics. Their beauty is gracefully displayed through chilling harmonies. Each member and their voice carry the same importance. One is not complete without the other.
It is in this craft that the young band shines so bright. It has earned them a sound that isn’t easily defined, but still proven triumphant. What may first appear as straight folk songs, later transcend into menacing walls of sound. The term “Folk-Pop” has been thrown around and maybe it loosely fits, but we will leave the definitions up to you.
The Denton Record-Chronicle said “Seryn’s set was so dynamic that you could feel the key changes in your feet, through Festival Hall’s concrete floor!”. While the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported, “Watching Seryn perform, it’s hard to convince yourself that those crystalline, multi-part harmonies are not pre-recorded or some kind of sleight of ear.” You can see where this is going…
“Beautiful arrangements (both in instrumentation and in vocal harmonies) and an epic, “big sky” sound that, at times, seems more fitting washing over dilapidated wooden pews in an old church than the usual torn-up couches, vinyl booths and barstools of area venues.” – Dallas Observer
“Like ice-cold water on a hot day, their music is crisp and refreshing, and I cannot get enough. The imagery packed into their set is unreal. It’s like listening to the soundtrack of a great love story, breathtaking drama, and a dark tragedy all rolled into one over-the-top, unparalleled performance.” – My Denton Music
“Seryn is fast becoming a must-see. One of Denton’s hottest bands in any genre…on the verge of big things.” – Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Foreign Fields is an electronic folk group that hails from the wintry plains of Wisconsin. New Years day of last year they met in their hometown, in an abandoned office building, to begin work on their first full length LP “Anywhere But Where I Am”. Having no set plan or guide, the album grew naturally as they left their lives in Chicago for hot summer days, skipping stones in the rivers of Tennessee. They’ve recently returned to Nashville after a string of summer dates opening for Counting Crows. Most recently, they wowed a sold out Exit/In audience opening for Paper Route. See them now before they start playing much bigger stages.
For any musician, getting a record deal or traveling on tour with seasoned, successful artists are the stuff dreams are made of. For acoustic pop songstress Julia Sinclair, those dreams are already becoming reality. She’s opened up for artists like Mat Kearney, Ingrid Michaelson and Graham Colton and is currently working on her debut full length album for ATO Records. All of this before even turning 20 years old mind you! Julia tastefully mixes her classically trained roots and her appreciation for modern pop music to create a sound that is equally balanced between skill and soul. (For a great example of this merging, check out this video of Julia blending her original song “Get Up” with a little of Lady Gaga’s “Just Dance” thrown in for good measure.) After traveling the country and crafting her songwriting voice for the last couple of years, she’s recently planted stakes in Nashville to capture and release those songs onto her first record, which is scheduled to be released later this year. In the meantime, she’s joined up with NoiseTrade to release her new four-song EP, Slow and Steady.
Way back in March of this year, when Cause A Scene was still in its infancy after just 3 shows, I received an email asking if we’d be interested in hosting Bill Mallonee for a house show this year. I don’t think I have ever typed a faster “Yes!” response in my life. As one of Paste Magazine’s “100 Greatest Living Songwriters” Mallonee is one of the most prolific songwriters of our era, first as the lead singer of Vigilantes of Love and now as a solo act. Years ago I remember hearing a friend in Birmingham describe Bill as the greatest songwriter he has ever heard, and if he’s not the best, he certainly deserves to be in the discussion as one of the greatest. It had been a dream of mine to see Bill perform ever since hearing my friend wax poetic about his music, I just never knew it would be in my own living room. I think you’ll see the reason for all the fuss if you’re able to be at the show this Saturday.
Cause A Scene is also proud to bring you The Olive Tree who will be opening the night. We’re really just pinching ourselves to make sure this show is real. Tickets are available in advance for $8 via Eventbrite (reserve ticket online, pay at the door) and will also be available for $12 at the door. This show will be worth every single penny. Can’t wait to see you all there!
Tonight. 7:00PM doors, tunes at 8:00. Nashville’s Church Mice, aka Clayton Fike, kicks things off first. We’ve been wanting to have Clayton play ever since we met the guy several months ago at another house show, and we’re glad to have him on board for house show #18. If you don’t already know Clayton from Church Mice, you may know him as one of the newest members of Foreign Fields, who we had play one of our biggest house shows back in May. (Public Service Announcement: Foreign Fields are playing as part of Communion Nashville’s August showcase this Thursday night at the Basement and the lineup is SICK! Big Surr, Jessie Baylin, Jill Andrews and Gold Motel also join. Things are gonna get rrreeeeaaallll.)
And for our headliner we have Minneapolis natives Caroline Smith and Jesse Schuster from Caroline Smith & The Good Night Sleeps. As a four-piece band they have toured all over the country, both headlining shows and opening for hugely successful acts like Cloud Cult and Trampled By Turtles. They’re making their first Nashville appearance as a duo as part of a two-week-long-plus living room tour. Cause A Scene is so proud to have them as part of our house concert series. Caroline’s music is full of pop hooks that stick in your mind and Midwestern folk sensibilities that make up songs that feel almost instantly recognizable. Most notable is her one-of-a-kind voice, that is equal parts Billie Holliday, Feist and Joanna Newsom. We think you’ll come away completely enamored. We sure are!
If you’re planning on coming to the show, give us a shout at shows@causeascenemusic.com or reserve tickets via Eventbrite here. If we’re lucky, perhaps Caroline and Jesse will break out this wonderful cover of Beyonce’s “Why Don’t You Love Me.”
Or if covers aren’t your thing, how about an original. Here’s “Rocking Chair”, beautifully filmed by North Shore Sessions:
As we are running short on time this week, we have an abbreviated post to announce what we believe is going to be one of the most fun house shows we have had the chance to put on in quite some time. Memphis buzz-band Star & Micey headline with local favorites Carolina Story making a return appearance to the Cause A Scene house show stage. This Friday night, July 20th, we’ll open up our doors at 7:30 for our 16th house show of the year. Tickets are $7 with an advance RSVP, which you can take care of by emailing shows@causeascenemusic.com or by registered on our Eventbrite page here. Tickets will also be available at the door for $10. (Note: At this time, we only accept cash, so please plan accordingly.)
We’ve run into some parking issues the last couple shows we’ve had, so in the spirit of not attracting the cops for a third time (our neighbors really are the bee’s knees), please park across the street at the church. It’s a short twenty second walk from their parking lot to our driveway. And now without further adieu, I present you with the words of several folks we hold in high regard who have already caught on to one of Tennessee’s next great bands:
“Star & Micey breezed into our New Faces Nite at The Basement and schooled every other act on the bill. Did the Avett Bros set up camp in Memphis? Upbeat and alive. They made me smile big time.” – Mike “Grimey” Grimes, The Basement
“In their four-year career as a band, Star & Micey have crafted then steadily smoothed out out a brand of folksy pop that brings to mind Memphis legends Big Star and The Avett Brothers. Every live show I’ve seen of theirs (upwards of 20 at this point) feels like an all-out energy sacrifice, complete with backflips, crowd-mingling and full-throttle “bah-dah-bah”-ing.” – Paste Magazine
“Star & Micey make winsome, feel-good, old-timey-tinged pop tunes that owe as much to sea shanty-spouting indie acts like the Decmeberists as they do straight-up bluegrass bands like Freakwater and Nickel Creek.” – AllMusic Guide
(Good gosh the harmonies on this last one are about as perfect as harmonies can get.)
Over the course of the first 14 house shows we have had the pleasure of hosting at Cause A Scene HQ, few have remain so fully ingrained in my memory like our first Collective show back in March. It feels like ages ago despite only a little over three months time elapsing. For me it was the first time getting to hear most of the artists perform, many of which have become good friends since that show. That night holds a very special place in my heart, not just for the memory of the actual experience itself, but for the tours and co-writes and creative connections that came out of that show. That night was the perfect illustration of what we are trying to achieve with Cause A Scene: build a magnificently dynamic music community of people who believe in something much bigger than themselves. Part One also happened to be one of the most well-attended shows we’ve ever had with people unfortunately stuck on the back porch looking through the windows trying to catch a glimpse of the incomparable performances taking place inside.
Now we have the distinct privilege of hosting not 10, but 11, incredible artists who seem to get better and better each time I listen to them play and who have very strong careers ahead of them. We are on pace to set an attendance record with this show, and I think after watching the videos below, the reason why will become very clear.
But first, if you’re planning on attending but haven’t RSVPed yet, please email shows@causeascenemusic.com and we’ll get the event details to you ASAP. Advance RSVPs are available through the end of Thursday for $5 at the door. We will also have a small amount of tickets available at the door for $10. And now, without any further ado, I give you the Cause A Scene Collective:
