WMOT Finally Friday, Brother & The Hayes, Cimarron 615, Thunder & Rain

Fri Feb 28 2025

12:00 PM (Doors 11:00 AM)

3rd and Lindsley

818 3rd Ave. S Nashville, TN 37210

FREE ADMISSION

All Ages

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WMOT Finally Friday featuring Brother & The Hayes , Cimarron 615 & Thunder & Rain

  • WMOT Finally Friday

    WMOT Finally Friday

    Americana

  • Brother & The Hayes

    Brother & The Hayes

    Americana

  • Cimarron 615

    Cimarron 615

    Americana

    Vibrant New Country Rock with Deep Genre Roots

    On debut album Brand New Distance, Cimarron 615 announce themselves as a vibrant new voice with rich Nashville roots. The 10-song record channels a collective heritage that includes Poco, the Flying Burrito Brothers, and Loretta Lynn into a refreshingly contemporary take on harmony-laden, narrative country rock.

    Brand New Distance oozes world-class songcraft and innate musicality enhanced with achingly nuanced vocal harmonies, poignant lyrics, and sinewy solos. Marrying bluegrass instrumentation (banjo, mandolin, Dobro) to breezy California country rock, gritty blues, and pop sensibilities, Cimarron 615 effortlessly traverses everything from stripped-down acoustic arrangements to full-on three-guitar rock.

    Cimarron 615’s story goes back to country-rock legends Poco and their late frontman Rusty Young, with whom all five members have musical history. When Young passed in 2021, Blue Élan Records head Kirk Pasich organized a tribute concert and album featuring the musicians who would become Cimarron 615 as the house band. The chemistry between the quintet was so palpable that Pasich offered them a record deal as a standalone touring act.

    “They’ve got a history and a legacy but, make no mistake, they’re a new band,” said Pasich. “Every song on the album could be a single – it’s that strong.”

    Named for the Poco classic “Rose of Cimarron” and Nashville’s 615 area code, every member of Cimarron 615 is a respected songwriter, accomplished singer, and virtuosic instrumentalist. The band comprises Rick Lonow (Poco, Flying Burrito Brothers), drums/percussion/vocals; Jack Sundrud (Poco, Great Plains), bass/vocals; Michael Webb (Poco, Hank Williams Jr.), keyboards/mandolin/accordion/vocals; and Ronnie Guilbeau (Flying Burrito Brothers, Griffin-Yancey-Guilbeau, Palomino Road), guitars/vocals.

    “It just felt like the natural and right thing to do, creatively,” mulled Webb, an in-demand session player who joined Poco in 2010. “All being from Nashville and all being part of the rusty Young and Poco family, we just had a natural chemistry.”

    At Pasich’s suggestion, each member of Cimarron 615 contributed two songs to Brand New Distance. They devoted a day at Nashville’s storied Treasure Isle studio (Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton etc.) to each composition, with the respective songwriter acting as musical director for the session. In a testament to their cohesion and experience, the self-produced collection was essentially recorded live, with minimal overdubs.

    “It’s not all just hugs and kisses – we also rub up against each other!” laughed Lonow, long among Nashville’s first-call drummers. “That chemistry is really what makes the great bands.”

    Never trite and always honest, Brand New Distance imparts thought-provoking, sometimes deeply personal stories apt to its rootsy cross-pollination of styles. “It’s pretty eclectic, because we brought in two songs apiece,” said Sundrud, a part of Poco from the mid ‘80s to its final incarnation. “There’s definitely elements of Poco; elements of bluegrass; elements of blues.”

    With vast experience in their intriguing mélange of styles at the very highest levels, authentically creating these diverse yet consistently sublime sounds is simply in Cimarron 615’s blood.

    Brand New Distance may spawn as many as five singles, among them album opener “High Lonesome Stranger,” with its instantly evocative bluegrass harmonies and gone-too-soon story inspired by Gram Parsons and Hank Williams. The mandolin driven “Try Again” could be an update on the classic Poco sound that also channels a more contemporary/poppy REM influence. Meanwhile, the brooding “Cain’s Blood” wrestles with the duality of human nature – good vs. evil; dark vs. light – against an ominously tribal, minimalist groove.

    “High” is the song that the Grateful Dead’s “Uncle John’s Band” might be playing when gathered in the woods, transcending everyday troubles through escapist Cali country rock. Yet another standout is inspirational, dynamic album closer “City of Angels,” which details the thrills and doubts of a young musician moving to the big city to chase their dreams – a story common to the members of Cimarron 615 and allegoric to so many big life decisions.

    Expect a few favorites from Cimarron 615’s illustrious pasts as well as improvised surprises that only such dues-paid musicians can provide. But the focus will be on Brand New Distance. “This is all of our investment, personal investments. And I really look forward to sharing that,” said Sundrud. “We have all this experience and history to be able to bring something that feels good to the audience.”

    Cimarron 615’s astoundingly filler-free Brand New Distance is their ultra-accomplished calling card as a singular new act with a charmingly old soul. It’s a record that lovingly ushers forward a country rock genre too often steeped in nostalgia, offering the tingling interpersonal dynamics and adventurous spirit that only new bands can capture.

    “I hope that our unique voice will stand out,” Lonow concluded. “That everyone can enjoy the beauty of the songs, the beauty of the melodies and performances, and at the same time get something deeper from the lyrics and the substance of the songs.”

  • Thunder & Rain

    Thunder & Rain

    Bluegrass

    In their decade-long career, Thunder and Rain has shared the stage with Billy Strings, Krueger Brothers, Peter Rowan, AJ Lee and Blue Summit and Brothers Comatose. Thunder and Rain's song “Run With You” Was selected for the IBMA Songwriter Showcase 2023!

    With her clear, angelic voice and memorable pop/country melodies, Erinn Peet Lukes leads her band Thunder and Rain. The acoustic outfit,  composed of Laura Ray on banjo and Amelia Ransom on fiddle, executes Lukes’ songs with expert bluegrass-style picking, skilled dynamics and rich three-part harmony. Their show takes the listener on a journey through the band’s story-telling lyrics and singable, get-stuck-in-you-head choruses.

    Lukes didn't know anything about bluegrass or country when she wrote her first song at thirteen in her hometown of Redondo Beach, California. She pursued her love of performing original songs through major music hubs like Seattle and New York City, until she landed in Golden, CO in 2013. She began to explore bluegrass jams in the Denver area, where she would eventually meet the band’s first line up of musicians. Thunder and Rain recorded their first record in 2014, and their second in 2017. For eight years, the band toured across the US, Canada, Ireland and the UK. Their bluegrass covers of popular songs have amassed hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube. 

    Thunder and Rain released their third album, Passing in the Night, January 2020. The pandemic thwarted big tour plans, and put the band (and album promotion) on indefinite hiatus.

    At the end of 2020 Lukes' packed her bags and moved to Nashville, TN, where she met Ransom and Ray through friends in the bluegrass community. They hit it off right away, and decided to reform the band and start again in Music City. Now the group is touring again, playing major festivals, and opening for other up-and-coming groups such as AJ Lee and Blue Summit and Rachel Sumner and Traveling Light. They are releasing an EP of brand new music in early Spring 2024.

     

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limit 10 per person
FREE EVENT

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Delivery Method

Will Call

Terms & Conditions

Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferrable.

WE ONLY ACCEPT TICKETWEB TICKETS.

Seating for each show are different.

Handicap accommodations can be arranged. Please contact the venue ahead of time.

WMOT Finally Friday featuring Brother & The Hayes , Cimarron 615 & Thunder & Rain

Fri Feb 28 2025 12:00 PM

(Doors 11:00 AM)

3rd and Lindsley Nashville TN
WMOT Finally Friday, Brother & The Hayes, Cimarron 615, Thunder & Rain

FREE ADMISSION All Ages

FREE ADMISSION

 

Please correct the information below.

Select ticket quantity.

Select Tickets

All Ages
limit 10 per person
FREE EVENT
$0.00 ($0.00 + $0.00 fees)

Delivery Method

Will Call

Terms & Conditions

Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferrable.

WE ONLY ACCEPT TICKETWEB TICKETS.

Seating for each show are different.

Handicap accommodations can be arranged. Please contact the venue ahead of time.