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Stephen Trageser

@stephentrageser615.bsky.social

290 followers 170 following 470 posts

music editor, Nashville Scene; regular, Gyro Spot; some call him "Goose"; probably thinking about Kate Bush ---- "I was put on Earth to do a certain number of things. Right now, I am so far behind I will never die."

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Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 1d

For my two cents, I greatly appreciate N.K. Jemisin. Happy any day for more sci-fi stories that feature perspectives beyond white guys with a messiah complex. After my wife devoured all the Jemisin she could get ahold of, I started with 'The Killing Moon' and was hooked immediately.

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 1d

And to Sean Maloney for hopping on the phone with Raphael Saadiq, whose one-man show is coming to the hall where the Nashville Symphony plays tomorrow:

Raphael Saadiq: The Cream Q&A

We speak with the R&B legend ahead of his stop at the Schermerhorn on his No Bandwidth solo tour.

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 1d

Busy morning proofing two great pieces. First up, big thanks to Annie and Angelina for covering Tyler Childers at the soccer stadium:

The New Country Church of Tyler Childers

The tour behind ‘Snipe Hunter’ brought fans together on several levels at Geodis Park.

www.nashvillescene.com

Reposted by Stephen Trageser

Rachel Cholst @rachelcholst.bsky.social · 5d

Excellent thoughts on the impossibility of separating the art from the artist

Country Universe @countryuniverse.net · Aug 31

Have had this one cooking for several weeks now: www.countryuniverse.net/2025/08/31/a...

A Separate Peace

Considerations on separating the art from the artist in 2025.

www.countryuniverse.net

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

And there's so much more. I can't thank my coworkers and our contributing writers enough for all the work they put in to this issue (and the ones we do every other week of the year).

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

Hayley Williams is a worldwide star, but puts a heap of effort into supporting important stuff at home. We're so lucky to have some rich resources in independent media, and WNXP is vital in that ecosystem.

Best Surprise Single Drop

It’s been a tough year for public media amid federal funding cuts, and Nashville Public Radio music-discovery station and indie radio darling WNXP stood at risk. The loss of Music

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

Storytelling is a huge part of great music, and Gee Slab stands tall in a town full of fantastic storytellers.

Gee Slab is deeply involved in a lot of collaborative work — see: everything the Six One Trïbe collective is up to, including the second run of their 615 Day

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

Jo Schornikow's new one told me something new about an instrument I've always been fascinated by. Even setting that aside, it's a beautiful and contemplative listen.

Best Multidisciplinary EP

Jo Schornikow might be known for the atmospheric indie folk she makes as the keyboardist in Phosphorescent, but her 2025 solo EP Quiet Excerpts is more like the dreamy drone

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

What does Charly Ortiz-Martinez NOT do? That's the easier list to make, honestly.

Best Indie Hustle

James Brown’s death left the title of Hardest Working Man in Show Business vacant, but Charly Ortiz-Martínez has come for the title belt. He not only kept the backbeat for

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

Daisha McBride's single is fantastic and reminds me of one of the coolest things I ever saw growing up. Even if kids didn't have access to any kind of instrument, let alone an MPC, they were gonna figure out how to make beats to practice freestyling over.

Best Hip-Hop Single

All of Daisha McBride’s July EP So Much for Summer deserves a shoutout for being cohesive in spite of its tonal and stylistic variety, as well as for McBride’s incisive

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

William Tyler has been out here busting it for a long time. His music is something I personally love a lot but even if it's not your thing, he's one of many who keep feeding positive things back into the ecosystem.

Best Solo Artist

William Tyler has been a familiar presence in Nashville music since his high school rock band Lifeboy made waves around town in the late ’90s. In the wake of tenures

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

Just gonna thread a couple things that really hit home for me in Music. 'Rhinestone Revolution' rips, full stop.

The debut full-length from the duo of twin brothers and country singer-songwriters Brandon and Derek Campbell has been more than a decade in the making. Both the work and wait

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

BON saison! I'm naturally partial to the music section and our regular contributors there, but there's so much deserving celebration across the board.

Nashville Scene @nashvillescene.com · 5d

Best of Nashville 2025 has landed! Read all the writers' choices and readers' poll results in the Scene's massive 37th annual #BON25 issue. Illustrations by Kat Conde.

Best of Nashville 2025

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 5d

One of those things that can be easy to miss because it happened later in the day, but nonetheless important:

Nashville Scene @nashvillescene.com · 6d

Vanderbilt students, faculty and professors marched on Wednesday as Chancellor Diermeier mulls funding deal with Trump administration.

Campus Crowd Demands Vanderbilt Reject Trump Deal

Students, faculty and professors marched on Wednesday as Chancellor Diermeier mulls funding deal with Trump administration

www.nashvillescene.com

Reposted by Stephen Trageser

Marissa R. Moss @marissarmoss.bsky.social · 7d

asked Kelsey Waldon to answer our DRTI questionnaire and she did not dissapoint!

Kelsey Waldon Answers the DRTI Proust-ish Questionnaire

For as long as I have been living in Nashville, Kelsey Waldon has been making her own kind of country music. I remember the first time I heard that voice, the voice John Prine said he’d listen to sing...

www.dontrocktheinbox.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 8d

There is a lot of absolute garbage in the world and it's incredibly hard to be an artist. But people are still out here busting their asses to put on a culturally engaged Happening-type affair of a show. And people are getting it!

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 8d

I like Snooper a lot. Even if I didn't enjoy the music — a friend described them p accurately as "a Devo LP played at 78 rpm" — I would love that they exist.

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 8d

Major thanks to P.J. and Angelina for catching the release party for the latest from Nashville art-punks Snooper! It's a muscular DIY whirlwind.

Snooper Goes ‘Worldwide’ at Eastside Bowl

From our live-review column The Spin: Pressure Heaven and massie99 joined in the art-punk aces’ album release celebration.

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 10d

Sometimes when it sounds like I am sighing I was focused on something and simply forgot to breathe deeply for a minute there 😂

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 11d

Big thanks to Noah, who happens to be our editorial intern, for catching up with Isaac Brock from Modest Mouse. Good talk, also great to see student journos turning out strong work.

Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock: The Cream Q&A

Catching up with the acclaimed rock frontman ahead of the band’s show at The Pinnacle.

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 12d

Whether one gives a proverbial shit about any of the releases or not, the indie stores are here every day. We've got a lot of them! Very cool.

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 12d

Barely feeling like fall, but RSD Black Friday is a-comin', with special releases from Cage the Elephant, Kesha, GloRilla, Chappell Roan and a bunch more.

Cage the Elephant, More Announce RSD Black Friday Titles

The annual list of special releases also includes titles from Kesha, Marcus King, GloRilla and many others.

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 12d

You won't be surprised that Trump trade policy is having the exact effect that experts have been telling us it would have. (👋 @kairyssdal.bsky.social, @crampell.bsky.social et al)

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 12d

It's yet another packed issue! Massive thanks to JP Olsen (and everyone who spoke with him) for this in-depth look at where tariffs are hitting the Nashville independent music world.

Nashville’s Independent Music Economy Takes Tariff Hits

Talking with gear makers, gear sellers and indie musicians about the impact of trade policy under Trump 2.0.

www.nashvillescene.com

Stephen Trageser @stephentrageser615.bsky.social · 12d

Greatly appreciate Bobbie talking with Carter Faith, who's having a hell of a debut year.

Carter Faith Creates a Country Dreamworld in ‘Cherry Valley’

The rising star discusses her debut LP, writing with Billy Bob Thornton and more.

www.nashvillescene.com