While describing the influx of businessmen and record executives migrating from Los Angeles to his Nashville hometown, Justin Townes Earle emanates frustration. “It’s colonialism," he said. "The TV show 'Nashville'has made it sound like we are enjoying this new-found reputation. But if you ask me, we already had a pretty damn good one.”

It’s an interesting time to be in a band, what with society’s newfound hyperconnectivity and all. The seemingly endless tide of adept millennials pumping out totally decent music on bedroom laptops can bestow an unsettling urgency for artists to try and keep up. 

From psychological anthropology to tribal dance rituals, there isn’t much that doesn’t inspire Shara Worden. Since forming My Brightest Diamond in 2006, Worden has blurred the lines between classical, pop, cabaret and folk, while drawing upon wide-ranging themes. But to her, genre is irrelevant. Worden simply puts anything and everything she enjoys into her music.

For the third year running, the first weekend in November hosts Eastown’s Lamp Light Music Festival. The three-day gala of artistic delights brings together some of the area’s most ardent and talented creators, serving as a celebration of both really great music and a community’s potential to carve its own cultural niche.