Shoot The Mountain

Once a quirky country outfit called the Jigsaw Mountain Boys, Shoot the Mountain approach their gritty, pop-infused garage rock with the vibrant enthusiasm of the childhood game, “Shoot the Moon,” which their name alludes to. Originally hailing from Murfreesboro, Tennessee, where band members Joe Blankenship and Jonathan Brock played together as wee lads, the youngsters “escaped” the ‘Boro and headed to Nashville. “I hit a dead end writing country songs” says wily and energetic front man Joe Blankenship, so the band shifted to creating more pop-oriented songs after the like-minded local success of their friends in How I Became the Bomb did the same.

Their self-titled EP is stacked with feel-good, Weezer-esque ditties about everything from a boy born in a zoo to time travel, each brandishing the curveball intricacies of Built To Spill and early Modest Mouse. Backed by Nashville’s long-time champion of local indie rock Theory 8 Records, Shoot the Mountain bully you into spazzing out on the dance floor as you succumb to their refreshingly engaging and helplessly catchy grit.