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SXSW preview: Those Darlins’
Those Darlins style hill country melodies with boots made for rocking. The Tennessee-based female trio, whose new self-titled album draws liberally from both Patsy Cline (“Mama’s Heart”) and the Ramones (“Hung Up on Me”), relish the lost highway’s freedom.
“Living out of a van is kind of like being a gypsy,” singer and ukulele player Nikki Darlin says. “It’s an experience. I’d much rather be doing this than being at home with a steady job making money.” (Their official showcase is 11 p.m. Thursday at Billboard.com Bungalow (Habana Bar), 708 Sixth. St.)
American-Statesman: What do you remember from your SXSW shows last year?
Nikki Darlin: Absolutely nothing. I was trashed the whole time. Just kidding! Man, it was jumping from one venue to the next. We have five shows this year, but I’m hoping to check out some friends, too. Our producer (Jeff Curtin) did Small Black, but we’ve never seen them play. We’ve played a couple shows with Shannon and the Clams. We just played with Natural Child, so I’m psyched about seeing them.
Your blog shows recent photos of you guys at (Go Music president and ‘True Blood’ music supervisor) Gary Calamar’s place.
Yeah, but it wasn’t for anything specific. We were just out there to meet and hang out and play for him.
Gary’s on a panel (TV Resurrects the Radio Star, 5 p.m. Wednesday) about placing music on television.
It’s definitely very helpful! As depressing as it is, more people watch television now than go out to see live shows to check out new bands. It’s a helpful way to get your music out there to the masses.
Twenty years ago, people would’ve said that’s selling out, but today…
Oh, I don’t believe that. Sure, maybe 20 years ago, but it’s helpful for the band because you’re getting the music out there and heard. Maybe (it’s selling out) if it’s affiliated with something you don’t believe in, a terrible corporate gas company or something. Everyone has their own beliefs and opinions.
Your song ‘The Whole Damn Thing’ might fit well in a (Quentin) Tarantino movie.
I’d love for that to be in a Tarantino movie! It’s a true thing that’s happened to me. It’s stupid, whatever, but I wasn’t planning to ever play that song for anyone, and then (bassist) Kelley (Darlin) heard it through a friend of mine. I wrote it after New Year’s 2005. It was about getting wasted after being at my mother’s house. She’s a vegetarian, so there’s never meat there.
Then you went home…
…And there was an entire rotisserie chicken in the refrigerator. I was trashed and devoured it. Apparently, it’d been there for two weeks. It was old and gross, but I didn’t know. (The next morning), I was just hung over, didn’t get sick. People like that song. People like stupid and silly.
Covering the A.P. Carter songs (‘Who’s That Knockin’ On My Window,’ ‘Cannonball Blues’) on the new album is serious business, though.
When we started playing together - before we were a band - we pretty much just covered Carter Family songs, the three of us playing acoustic. We’d do two-hour sets of tons of Carter songs, so those songs really mean a lot to us. We formed over our love of them. Those two on the album are our favorites, and we want to represent that.
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