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*Note: The video playlist at the bottom of the post attempts to closely approximate the shuffle I listened to on my way to work this morning. When a video for a song was not available, I substituted another song by the same artist. When I could not find any videos by an artist, I included a related video or did not include a video for that track. This blog may reference unreleased tracks, however, no unreleased music is ever included.
The E2TG 8th Anniversary is now only FIVE DAYS away!
September 25 - Week 1: Ben Arthur + Conrad y Skordalia
October 2 - Week 2: Ryan Sobb + Don Gallardo
October 9 - Week 3: The Truehearts + Jason Erie
October 16 - Week 4: Josh Gray + Meghan Hayes
October 23 - Week 5: Microwave Mountain + The Big Dumb
Look for a MAJOR announcement about one of our shows coming very soon!
Today is a big day at E2TG. It is release day for Talking Dogs and Atom Bombs the new album and ANTI- Records debut for Darrin Bradbury. I decided I could not let this momentous occasion go by without making a big to-do about it. So here is that big to-do!
My association with Darrin Bradbury goes back to July 2012 - when I featured his old band Big Wilson River. I had come to know that band through a recommendation of a fellow New Jersey musician named Don Ryan. It turns out that about the time I featured Big Wilson River, they were in their final days (if not already defunct).
Fast-forward to a little over a year later in November 2013, I was contacted by another New Jersey friend who told me that Darrin had moved to Nashville and I should keep an eye out for him. I immediately found his bandcamp page and downloaded a demo collection that was on there and I was completely blown away. Over the course of the next several months, I think I had at least one DB song in my shuffle almost every single day (if not two or three). Darrin was living out of his car in a Wal-Mart parking lot, when I fist connected with him on social media. Some stuff was going on in my life, too, at the time, so it wasn't until May of 2014 when we finally met in person. In the meantime, Darrin became a fixture at The Building (a late, lamented venue/event space/rehearsal space/whatever in East Nashville and at almost every open mic night in town. He quickly caught the ear and eye of some of East Nashville's finest and slowly word started to spread.
When my circumstances settled down by the end of summer 2014, I made it my habit to catch Darrin every time he played - often 3-4 times a week. The regular gig was Wednesday night at Fran's Eastside with Tim Carroll. When Darrin started working the backdoor at The 5 Spot, I spent many a late night/early morning just hanging out and talking.
In retrospect, things moved both fast and slow. That all doesn't seem like it was five years ago and it took a lot of steps and missteps to get from open mic nights and doorman jobs to signing to ANTI- Records and getting good press from places like Billboard, Rolling Stone, and NPR. For me, there is no doubt it was the power of Darrin's songs combined with the force of his personality. Both are subtle at times but powerful and undeniable.
There is more I could write, but I don't have a lot of time and anyway, this is supposed to be about Talking Dogs and Atom Bombs. So rather than shuffle, like I usually do, I listened to the new album straight through on my morning commute. I am not going to offer song by song commentary right now. I HIGHLY recommend that you buy this album in whatever format works for you, and that you save/download/favorite/bookmark/whatever you need to do on the streaming platforms. By all means, listen to this album. Revel in the words and the humor and the seriousness and all of it.
I can say that my life would not be what it is today if I had not met Darrin Bradbury, and I think his songs have an ability to have such an impact on anyone who listens.
Darrin Bradbury - Talking Dogs and Atom Bombs - Release Date 9/20/2019
"Talking Dogs and Atom Bombs"
"Breakfast"
"Hell's More or Less the Same"
"The Trouble with Time"
"Strange Bird"
"Nothing Much"
"The American Life"
"This Too Shall Pass"
"Motel Room, Motel Room"
"So Many Ways to Die (Frozen Pizza)"
"Dallas 1963"
The album almost matched my commute perfectly, but I was just a little bit away from my office when it ended. The next song that came on was "True Love" a staple of Darrin's set for all of those 2014 shows I saw. A perfect way to end this special E2TG post!
BONUS TRACK
"True Love"
VIDEO PLAYLIST
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