A lot of that is actually why I would recommend Knoxville over Nashvillle. It's smaller, but it has lower home prices, more access to nature (I went hiking in the Smokies or Cumberland plateau many weekends), less of the country kitsch, better weather since it's higher up (although still somewhat miserable in parts of the summer), but you still get an airport and the tax/income stuff if you care. Plus, Oak Ridge National Lab (why I was there), Y-12 and the University of Tennessee mean it can be a bit denser in terms of some tech stuff and the general mood (I very much feel you on the fake-friendly-christian-tied-weirdness, found it to be less so in Knox) if you know where and how to look. More of an old-hand career-oriented crowd than the younger Nashville scene, but still interesting people.

Although, ultimately, I reached the same conclusion. I'm from Chicago and now I live in Arlington right outside of DC. I got out as soon as my contract ended. Can't really imagine going back.