Nashville country group Those Darlins return to Memphis and the Hi-Tone this Saturday night. While some of the bigger exports of the young Nashville music scene have had mixed results winning Memphis over, Those Darlins have drawn a steady crowd each time they venture west down I-40.
For the unfamiliar, Nashville’s Those Darlins play country music heavily influenced by late-’70s rock-and-roll, and the title of their latest full-length, Blur the Line, suggests the band is fully aware they owe as much to June Carter Cash as Joan Jett. If Those Darlins did ever decide to trade Music City for the Bluff City, they would serve as an interesting bridge between groups like Lucero and Jack Oblivian.
With their third album, critics from NME to Spin magazine believe the Darlins are growing up. While singles from previous albums dealt with teenage angst, drug use, and pesky love interests, the single “Oh God” features a weary and haunting recollection of life on the road, as lead singer Jessie Zazu sings about “another ashtray of a night.” The change in sound could be due to the addition of Adrian Barrera on bass, who joined the band after founding member Kelly Anderson left in early 2012. Barrera was previously a member of the Atlanta power-pop group Gentleman Jesse and His Men.
— Chris Shaw
Those Darlins play the Hi-Tone Saturday, December 7th, with Music Band and Girls of the Gravitron. Admission is $10, and the show starts at 10 p.m.
