The Swon Brothers and Jay Pounders Tap Into Their Muse at Belcourt Taps

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by Rich and Laura Lynch

There’s an old adage that you never know what awaits you on a night out in Nashville, Tennessee and that saying held true for us yet again as we walked into the cozy Belcourt Taps in the trendy Hillsboro side of town for an evening of quality musical entertainment on July 7, 2017.

The Swon Brothers were a unexpected treat in Nashville.

The acts that caught our eye couldn’t have taken more divergent paths in the music industry. Immediately we spotted Zach and Colton Swon – better known as The Swon Brothers – who rocketed to international stardom as one of the most successful contestants to emerge from NBC’s The Voice. They were onstage during the 8 p.m. portion of the showcase leading a musical round-robin featuring six total players.

Jay Pounders was the reason we were in the house. He went on at nine with a partial reunion of his 80’s new wave band Crossfire Choir [#crossfirechoir]. Back in the day Pounders was poised and positioned to hit the big time. He had a video in rotation on MTV, a deal with Geffen Records, production by Steve Lillywhite and the group was managed by famed CBGB founder Hilly Kristal. Still, hair bands and later grunge along with their persistent and petulant punk attitude conspired against them to make sure that their shot at fame never quite found the crosshairs.

Zach and Colton – proud owners of the new Rich Lynch Band T-shirt.

Back to the Swon songs. The brothers looked quite at home in the cozy confines of the Belcourt bar as they showed off their songwriting skills on a tune they penned for Lady Antebellum. At one point Zach graciously gave way to his future sister-in-law as he invited fellow The Voice alumni Caroline Glaser to the stage.

The attractive and confident performer obliged requests from the crowd and offered up her tune “Wolves” that was seductive, vulnerable and howling all at once. This presented the songstress in a class that was hard to categorize – but WOW would be a good place to start.

The Voice alumni Caroline Glaser seperated from the pack with her “Wolves”.

Jay’s downsized Crossfire Choir reunion took the stage as a three-piece and they had several fine moments that were live-streamed around the world. First, an extended nod to Johnny Cash found Pounders pandering to the Nashville natives on “Folsom Prison Blues” who always eat up the Man in Black. “Canary Song” from their debut LP found the boys doing what they do best on a track that ended with a big joyous sing along that even Irish rockers The Alarm might have crafted. Jay’s time in Nashville has been productive for the songwriter as shown on more introspective numbers such as “Heaven” and “Creepy Old Guy”. Always the agitator Pounders couldn’t help giving everyone in attendance ‘The Finger” while he was at it.

What the musicians did have in common on this night was MCN founder Rich Lynch’s new T-shirt. Jay wore the bold green and black statement for his whole set while Zach and Colton walked out with a pair of the promo items for the RLB’s new alien and drinking-themed song “Take Me to Your Liter”. Speaking of drinking Rich had one tasty, locally brewed Bison Bock to go with his craft pizza – which he’d pass on the next time. Laura had a satisfying mushroom burger and Jay reports the veggie burgers are good, too. The ribs looked enticing as they rolled out so we do plan on returning A.S.A.P. to dig into those.

Jay Pounders takes another shot in Music City with a revamped Crossfire Choir.

Related Links: For more information on BELCOURT TAPS and the other organizations mentioned please visit the following links — Belcourt Taps | The Swon Brothers | Caroline Glaser | Jay Pounders | Rich Lynch Band

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