Aubrie Sellers has had a hell of a 2016 – she released her debut LP New City Blues (one of my most anticipated debuts of the year), got a gig on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, did a Daytrotter session, did a ton of touring, and is about to pull double (technically triple) duty this weekend during CMA Fest and Bonnaroo. On top of Sellers’ marathon week of gigging all around Middle Tennessee, she also holds the distinct privilege of being Lockeland Springsteen’s final installment of our pre-Bonnaroo Nashville Five series.
Despite being thrown into the buzzy (and growing) mass of “new-school” country with “old school” sensibilities, New City Blues is a hard hitting mix and match of country, rock (specifically Zep), western, and blues, far more developed than most anything else put out by her peers this year. It’ll be hard to find another act playing Bonnaroo with as much musical conflict (in the best way) of keen guitar with sleazy percussion creating her “garage country” sound, she’s well on her way to one of the buzziest sets at the Farm.
Amongst her slew of live sets this week, Sellers will be playing Friday, June 10th at the New Music On Tap Lounge at 3:45 PM. If you’ve decided to avoid the throngs of miserably hot (and presumably pungent) Bonnaroovians, you can also catch Aubrie on Wednesday June 8th on the Sirius XM Highway Finds Stage at 12:45 PM and the CMHOF Songwriter’s Session in Ford Theatre at 1:30 PM, on Thursday June 9th, on the Chevrolet Cruze Park Stage at 3:10, and the HGTV Lodge at 5:00 PM, and finally, if you don’t feel up to hitting any of Aubrie’s festival gigs, you can catch her headlining show at 3rd & Lindsley on Sunday, June 12th, featuring Dylan LeBlanc. After the week she’s had, somebody better buy her a drink or two.
I grew up in Nashville, and a lot of my favorite places (goodbye Opryland) are gone, but they have made room for some new favorites. When I’m not on the road, I’m usually curled up on my velvety grey couch. When I do venture out, these are a few of my favorite places to go.
- Parnassus Books
I’ve loved reading from an early age. We used to have a big, magical bookstore in Nashville called Davis-Kidd. I was sad to see it close, like most of the bookstores in the area have, but now we have a new little bookstore called Parnassus that always has a great selection and perfectly curated tables to explore. I pop in there whenever I have the chance. Unfortunately, you have to drive through Green Hills traffic to get there.
- The Belcourt
My other favorite thing: movies. This historic theater shows all those great independent films that don’t always make it to the bigger theaters. They also have special events, screenings, midnight movies, and even movies outside in the parking lot when the weather is good. The Belcourt is currently being renovated and should be re-opening within the next few months. I can’t wait!
- Virago
When I feel like going out for a nice meal, this is where I go. I can eat about five plates of the yellowtail jalapeño by myself, and the crispy brussels sprouts are amazing. If you want a drink, try the wasabi martini.
- The Planetarium at Adventure Science Center
It’s just cool to sit in here and stare at whatever is being projected, and you can learn something too!
- Game Galaxy
Arcades in general are awesome, but a lot of the newer arcades have iPhone games turned into machines, which is so disappointing. You can pay $10 to play all day at this place; they have a huge pinball selection, classic games like Pac-Man, Super Mario, Donkey Kong, and my favorite, Galaga.
Lockeland Springsteen 