Neo-Southern Rock from The Weeks at Mercy Lounge

Nashville – The Weeks don’t have a problem being compared to Kings of Leon. Lead singer Cyle Barnes told Irish Music website GoldenPlec, “If you’re going to be compared to somebody, that’s not a bad band to be compared to.” It’s a good thing they don’t mind because Barnes’ voice and his band’s wily guitar playing will surely earn that comparison to KOL’s first couple of albums again and again as their star continues to rise.

The Weeks are from Nashville, just like Kings of Leon, except that they come to Music City by way of Jackson, Mississippi. Nashville has happily adopted them though. In fact, they played two packed nights at Mercy Lounge. The second, Saturday night show was sold out and fiercely guarded by a bouncer turning away fans, angry that they couldn’t get tickets at the door any longer.

Cyle Barnes didn’t fail to burn his vocals for the people who did make it in. Whiskey flowed, and the pseudo-hometown crowd gave a raucous welcome to the band that has spent most of 2013 playing to crowds from Austin City Limits all the way to Glasgow, Ireland. Saturday’s show was the last before a brief break in touring, and it seemed like they used all their energy on that last night.

Cain Barnes, the drummer and twin brother to Cyle, was a whir of flying hair and skinny limbs on the back of the stage. His energy penetrated the band and the fans, as any good drummer should. Most everyone in Mercy Lounge was bopping around by the time they played “Buttons,” a catchy song off 2012’s Comeback Cadillac.

All of the band members worked the stage together. It wasn’t only Cyle’s job to keep the crowd visually interested. They felt each other’s solos and jammed together. Lead guitar player Sam Williams’ skills have reached the level that when he threw in his first solo on “The House We Grew Up In,” the crowd stood on tip-toes and craned their necks to watch him play before turning to their friends with raised eyebrows and approving nods. The chemistry between the five members of The Weeks is palpable. But this is as it should be since they’ve been playing together since the ages of fourteen and sixteen.

There’s another peculiar similarity between The Weeks and Kings of Leon—both have been together since before they could grow proper facial hair. Who knows, maybe The Weeks still can’t. They’re only in their early 20s. They’ve had bigger fish to fry though. The band was signed to Esperanza Plantation when the average age of the band was just eighteen. In 2012, they signed on board to Serpents and Snakes, Kings of Leon’s label. (Didn’t see that one coming, did ya?) Serpents and Snakes re-released Gutter Gaunt Gangster and their recent official label debut, Dear Bo Jackson.

Their fame has been spreading as expected. They aren’t breaking new ground with their music, but they do fit snuggly into the Neo-Southern rock scene with all the oversized performance energy to match. Keep an eye out for them, as they will surely nudge their way into mainstream indie over the next year or so.

Thumbnail By Jeff Winston

About
Latest Posts

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!