Todd Steed

Comments

There are no comments yet. Click here to start the conversation!

STORY TOOLS

• E-mail story
• Printer friendly

More Music News

• Jon Worley a vessel for the mystic
• Mary Gauthier's search for her birth mother brought something other than closure
• Cadillac Sky soars into bluegrass-based adventurers

Share and Enjoy

Choosing the decade's best local releases is just about as hard as picking the top releases of the decade overall. The music from the local scene has risen to such a high level that it often rivals and even surpasses the national buzz acts. While several artists released more than one great disc during the decade, I forced myself to choose only one disc per artist. And at least one Knoxville great, R.B. Morris, skipped releasing a full-length album for the entire decade. Still, here are 10 reasons to be glad you were in Knoxville during the aughts and probably 10 reasons to end the year with fist fight-size arguments over the choices:

1. "Heartbreak & Duct Tape," Todd Steed & The Suns of Phere (Apeville/Disgraceland), 2005

While it was "Knoxville Tells" that was the watershed for Steed's talent and musical diplomacy, this follow-up cemented that Steed had transitioned from a lovable punk to a major talent.

2. "At This Point In My Life," Donald Brown (Space Time), 2002

Everything great about jazz pianist/composer Donald Brown is contained in this package, from the irresistible retro-funk opener to the sweet and strange melodies and adventurous arrangements (on this album for septet) that follow. If you wonder why people like Dave Brubeck, Joe Henderson and Wynton Marsalis all give Brown props, here is the best place to find out.

3. "Last Call for Vitriol," Superdrag (Arena Rock), 2002

The swan song of the second Superdrag lineup and surely the emotional nadir of the group featured some of lead singer-songwriter John Davis' most biting, beautiful and distinctive work, along with great contributions from emerging singer-songwriter-bassist Sam Powers. It didn't hurt that drummer Don Coffey produced the disc with a clean, punchy sound that made it all sparkle.

4. "Rock-n-Roll Fiasco," Kevin Abernathy Band (www.kevinabernathymusic.com), 2007

A veteran guitar slinger of the hair-metal scene, Kevin Abernathy haunted Nashville singer-songwriter nights before returning to Knoxville to combine jarringly true songs with in-your-face guitar chops. This album left me shaking my head wondering, "Why I hadn't heard of this guy before?"

5. "Citation," Scott Miller (Sugar Hill), 2006

When the V-Roys split on the eve of the millennium, it robbed Knoxville of its most beloved rock groups. However, singer-songwriters Scott Miller and Mic Harrison both went on to create terrific music on their own. This disc, produced by legendary Memphis producer Jim Dickinson, is Miller's most riveting album to date, and the foul-mouthed and utterly entertaining "8 Miles a Gallon" pretty much sums up the decade.

6. "The Guilty Party Rages On," Senryu (www.senryu.bandcamp.com), 2008

Senryu is certainly Knoxville's most artistically ambitious and peculiar rock act. Most of the group's releases were only available at shows - and only at the specific shows when the song was released! This crazed and beautiful creation (now available for free) is packed with great pop songs that are buffeted by strange, sometimes gorgeous, sometimes spooky, little numbers and recurring themes.

7. "New Ways to Butcher English," The Tenderhooks, (www.myspace.com/tenderhooks), 2008

The Tenderhooks broke up in November just when the band seemed to be on the verge of a national breakout. Too bad. This album was packed with great material and proved the band had the stuff to win over the world.

8. "On the Right Side of the Grass," Mic Harrison and the High Score (www.micharrison.com), 2008

Mic Harrison and the High Score had been on the edge of a making a classic honky-tonk album for years. This time they did.

9. "Pieces of the World," Dixie Dirt (www.dixiedirtmusic.com), 2005

Before calling it quits, Knoxville rock band Dixie Dirt delivered this dark and ambitious opus that centers on a disintegrating relationship.

10. "Redistilled: 25 Years of Knoxville Rock," Various Artists (www.myspace.com/redistilled), 2008

This benefit CD for UT radio station WUTK, brings together generations of Knoxville rock artists performing each other's songs with such affection and attitude that it would be hard to not love it. It's a great sampler and an important piece of history.

© 2009, Knoxville News Sentinel
Want to use this article? Click here for options!