Say what you will about The Spin’s penchant for impunctuality; we know when to show up on time. Even after a near two-hour car ride to a dank hole in the ground in McMinnville, even when it involves being wrangled and herded down a path with confused-looking hipsters and families led by tour guides–all looking more than a bit like cattle–we know when to show up on time. And as we descended into the depths of the Cumberland Caverns, we overheard a preteen ask his father, “How long did it take ‘em to build this?” Damn. And we thought our generation was doomed. Keep an eye out for that one.

It was shortly before 3 p.m. Saturday afternoon as we made our way into Cumberland Caverns’ Volcano Room, a large chamber dimly lit and musty with cave stank. We quickly spotted a few dozen familiar faces–mostly those of Nashville show-goers and musicians, though Deerhunter’s Bradford Cox was also in the mix. We managed to share a few words with William Tyler, who, gleeful over the locale of his final show with the Jews, informed us that their performance was being shot on 16 mm film for a project that will hopefully be released sooner rather than later.

via Nashville - Nashville Scene - Nashville Cream - The Spin: Silver Jews Final Show at Cumberland Caverns’ Bluegrass Underground.

The marriage of natural wonder and modern ingenuity are unmistakably evident in Cumberland Caverns’ Volcano Room. Located an hour and a half southeast of Nashville in McMinnville, the caverns are breathtaking, and the Volcano Room, as Bluegrass Underground creator and producer Todd Mayo puts it, “could be the most unique venue around.”

via Nashville Music - Silver Jews take their swan song underground - page 1 - Nashville Scene.

By now perhaps you’ve heard about Silver Jews’ Jan. 31 Bluegrass Underground show at Cumberland Caverns . According to the BU website, Arnett Hollow will be opening. Mr. David Berman himself anticipates great things. Straight from the horse’s mouth [sic]:

well monotonix will be in fur one pieces playing drums with dinosaur bones and zildjan clamshells. I think i want William Tyler to depcit Chakha from Land of the Lost; tony crow will be deposited inside a Lascaux-Wildlife printed tuxedo from Petsmart Couture…but seriously there will be some major items. one thing i can tell you is that the silver jews credo "what we do is symbolic" is definitely in play here. I wouldn’t be surprised if this wasn’t the last silver jews show. We have a couple of shows in south america in the summer but that’s it.

So there you have it. Whether or not Willy T. dons a Cha-Ka body suit, I’m thinking this could be the show of the year. At the very least, it will be the finest spelunking-rock-and-roll hybrid event of the winter season.

Original Article:
http://blogs.nashvillescene.com/nashvillecream/2008/12/bermans_thoughts_on_silver_jew.php