We love it when you make it tough on us. That means it’s been a good month.
Independent musicians of the world brought the heat all month long, and you should all be proud of yourselves for doing such high-quality work. Our UMC20 Best of October compilation is but a sample of the many sonic landscapes we admired this month. We invite you to take them in alongside us!
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It’s freezing in Nashville today.
OK, it isn’t freezing. But highs are only in the 50s, so it might as well be.
What that also means is that it’s time to trade summer’s bright energy for cozier moods befitting the season. That’s not to say that there aren’t some bangers on this week’s edition of UMC20, but it is to point out that the back half of this week’s playlist has a healthy dose of pensive Americana tunes befitting the vibrant pastels of a mid-October sunset.
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“I can’t imagine you’d stay seated at this table if it was turned.”
No toxic relationship dynamic is worth sacrificing your own sense of self-worth. Regardless of our connection, sometimes the only choice we have is to walk away.
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With every week that goes by, the independent musicians of Earth continue bringing the HEAT.
It means we’ll never run out of choice cuts to feature on UMC20 (and elsewhere within this wild and wacky UMC ecosystem). And, while that lends us to make tough calls as to what to include, and where to slot each submission onto the playlist, rest assured that we’d rather have too much than too little.
If you’re a musician reading this, the best way to get on our radar is to submit your tunes here. And, while you head over to the forms and tell us everything we need to know about your music, enjoy this week’s edition of UMC20 for inspiration!
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Simply put, last Monday night at The Listening Room was one for the books.
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As a banjo player, Max Wareham is captivated by the formative events that led to the prominence of bluegrass music, and the impact of the artists who came before him. One of those artists is Rudy Lyle, a banjo player who performed with early Americana and bluegrass luminaries, including Bill Monroe, Patsy Cline, and many more.
Max explores Rudy’s influence on those artists — and on the decades of bluegrass and Americana music that followed — in his new book, Rudy Lyle: The Unsung Hero of the Five-String Banjo. Learn more on today’s episode!
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This week’s UMC20 is packed with gorgeous soundscapes, heartfelt stories, and even a few bangers sprinkled in.
We’ve had a couple weeks to re-load our stockpile of fresh jams, and we’re reaping the musical harvest here today. Have a seat at our table and dig in!
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Do you feel that chill in the air? Better put on some FIRE to keep us warm.
This month was full of fire, and we’re here to let it burn. These 20 tracks are a glorious snapshot of what September had to offer, weaving through genres and moods to create one true eclectic, yet unified masterpiece.
Let’s not delay. Get to it!
Hear the Best of September
We’ve tried to hang on to the summer of 2022 for as long as possible. And, if you’re in Nashville this week, it certainly seems like Mother Nature is thinking along the same lines.
But… it’s over. We’re officially heading into fall this week, but not before a last hurrah of high-powered summer bops. The first half of UMC20 is loaded with those, before gradually giving way to more mellow sounds befitting the cooler months.
OK… there are some Americana-tinged scorchers at the end, too. We couldn’t help ourselves!
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On Thursday night, we returned to The Cobra Nashville to kick off the fall NashLive! season.
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