Album Review- Those Darlins, Blur The Line

Nashville – Those Darlins have been causing a bit of a stir in Nashville lately. It’s not necessarily for the music on their new album, Blur The Line, so much as its risqué cover art that shows more Darlin flesh than we’ll ever see of most people. Nashville’s iconic record store Grimey’s New and Pre-loved Music recently strung a banner of the album cover over its doors, terrifying devotees of the local Fox News channel. Badass? Yes, Those Darlins always were.

The band straggled into the Nashville limelight in 2009 with a debut self-titled album that included songs with names such as “DUI or Die” and “Snaggle Tooth Mama.” It was progressive in an understated way, combining rockabilly, punk, and garage rock with a southern flare. At the very least, it was a hell of a lot of fun.

Band member losses and additions haven’t slowed Those Darlins’ fun down a bit. Original members Jessi Zazu and Nikki Kvarnes are accompanied by Linwood Regensburg on drums and Adrian Barerra on bass on Blur the Line.

Those Darlins moved out of the garage and into the studio starting with their 2011 release Screws Get Loose. Blur The Line features the same polished sound. It is indicative of Those Darlins’ effort to be taken with more seriousness than songs like “Snaggle Tooth Mama” demand. Blur the Line is a near reversal from the wild women we met in 2009. If their debut album was their high, Blur The Line is their comedown, a time to do a little self-reflection.

For Those Darlins, self-reflection doesn’t mean pretty songs or even complex songs. “Oh God” is the first and arguably the strongest track off the album. It conveys the blue, burnt-out regret that seems to shadow a rock n’ roll lifestyle. The remaining tracks attempt to follow suit, each bearing a level of sorrow or cynicism.

True to their punk roots, songwriters Zazu and Kvarnes keep it simple with lyrics like, “I used to be an optimist. It got too dangerous. Used to share the things I saw. They all say la-dee-da.” If you don’t mind the sort of carelessness that leads to rhyming “things I saw” with “la-dee-da,” you can appreciate the straight-forward immediacy with which these lyrics are delivered. Much as with punk music, there’s no subtlety happening here.

Simple vocal choruses and drum patterns on “In the Wilderness” and “Western Sky” sound like a slow-tempo, ironical take on The Shangri-Las, a band of fellow badass women who were a precursor to the punk movement. A delayed vocal overdub on many of the songs creates a sense of unease in the best way possible. It’s a feeling you expect, coming from a band that does nude album covers.

Blur The Line does just that for Those Darlins: it blurs the lines between in-your-face garage rock and emotionally raw music from people with, you know, feelings. Blur The Line shows a band that’s a little lost as to where they stand as artists, but at least they’re honest about it. And let us hark back to that spectacular album cover one more time because it certainly blurs the line between what is appropriate and inappropriate, especially in Those Darlins’ hometown of Nashville which sits not-so-comfortably in the Bible belt. As they find their way as people and musicians, may Those Darlins always frighten Nashville’s Fox News channel.

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Caroline McDonald

My first memory is of singing Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” quietly to myself during preschool naptime. Perhaps it’s because I’m from Nashville where an instrument lives in every home, but music has gripped me for as long as I can remember.

After dabbling in many parts of the music industry—recording studios, PR, management, labels, publishing—I’m expanding into music journalism because I’m yet to find anything more rewarding that finding and sharing new music.

A longtime sucker for girls with guitars, my musical taste unabashedly follows the songwriting lineage of Dolly Parton and includes Patty Griffin, Gillian Welch, and Neko Case. But not to pigeonhole myself, my music love is big love that stretches from R.L. Burnside to Animal Collective to Lord Huron.

I’ve recently moved home to Nashville after living in Boston and Big Sur for several years. I’d forgotten how music pours onto the streets ten hours a day, seven days a week. I’m honored to share the creative explosion happening here. If your band is in the area or of the area, please reach out!