This week’s Nashville Music News: The Mountain Goats
New music and live shows kept the week busy: The Mountain Goats and Wishy both put out new singles, and a run of Nashville stages hosted everything from a banjo-forward Opry Plaza set to a full-band showcase in Hendersonville. Here’s the roundup.
The Mountain Goats — “Candlebox”
The Mountain Goats have shared “Candlebox,” the third single from their new album Days, out August 7 on the band’s own Cadmean Dawn Records via Thirty Tigers. John Darnielle wrote the song from the perspective of a fictional early-’90s band who land an opening slot on tour with the real Candlebox — and don’t survive the experience as a band. It’s a sharp, specific bit of songwriting even by Darnielle’s standards. It also lines up with the grunge-era undertow running through Days, alongside earlier singles “Going to Fennario,” “Charlie Sheen Reaches Out to the Feds,” and “Shallow Grave.”
Listen to “Candlebox” on Spotify
Wishy — “All the Rage”
Indianapolis dream-pop outfit Wishy are out with “All the Rage,” the second single from their sophomore album Nature’s Pill, due October 2 via Winspear. Co-lead singer Kevin Krauter takes the mic here, trading vocals with bandmate Nina Pitchkites over a rush of jangly, fuzzed-out guitars — the kind of song that dresses adult heartbreak up in teenage urgency. The band recorded it together in the room, and it shows: there’s a looseness to the track that never loses its shape.
Listen to “All the Rage” on Spotify
Breakfield at The Basement, Nashville
Breakfield — the Nashville band formerly known as Boy Named Banjo — played The Basement on Saturday, July 11, with Maura Streppa opening. The band has been road-testing a new alt-country direction, drifting further from their rootsy beginnings and leaning into jangly, high-powered rock & roll, a shift that suits a room this size.
Josiah and the Bonnevilles at the Grand Ole Opry
Josiah and the Bonnevilles — the project led by Appalachian singer-songwriter Josiah Leming — played the Opry 100 Plaza Summer Concert Series on July 11. Leming built the Bonnevilles around a folk, Americana, and country blend rooted in honest, unpolished storytelling, and the Opry Plaza slot was a solid showcase for that sound outside the historic room itself.
Andrew Leahey & the Homestead — Rock Castle, Hendersonville
Nashville’s Andrew Leahey & the Homestead brought their full band to the Rock Castle Summer Songwriter Series in Hendersonville on July 18, sharing the bill with ZG Smith and others. Leahey’s anthemic, guitar-driven rock & roll owes a clear debt to Petty and Springsteen.
Will Hoge’s Eastside Ramble — Eastside Bowl, Nashville
Will Hoge is stepping outside the club circuit to throw his own event: the inaugural Eastside Ramble at Eastside Bowl, July 24 and 25. The Nashville native and Grammy-nominated songwriter built it as a two-day, all-ages celebration of East Nashville’s musical past and present. Expect music across all three of the venue’s rooms, plus art, comedy, and more, running noon to 9pm both days.
Chuck Prophet & Stephie — back on the road for “Summer Rampage”
Chuck Prophet announced via newsletter that he and Stephie are returning to the road as the Chuck & Stephie Acoustic Quartet for what he’s calling the Summer Rampage. The announcement follows a run of summer festival dates, including their own Summertime Thing, the Mother Hips’ HIPNIC, and Waterfront Blues Festival. The newsletter itself didn’t list dates, but our Nashville Concert Calendar for August already has him booked at City Winery Nashville on August 10.
That’s this week’s Nashville music news — stay tuned to Planet Mars Music for the latest on shows, new music, and everything worth your ears.
A curated pick by Planet Mars Music Editorial Staff and crafted with the help of AI