Three girls took the stage at Union Pool on Saturday looking way too cute. I thought to myself, if this is another girl band that looks stylish and cool but sounds generic or like ABC bubblegum, I’ll be very upset. For any music fan, one of the greatest pleasures of a show is when the opening band is better than the band you went to see. I can only remember a couple of times when this has happened to me. In 2002 I went to see the Conor Oberst’s side project Desaparecidos and the opener was Rilo Kiley, a band that changed my life and then let me down. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen again!
On Saturday at Union Pool I went to see The Soft Pack. Their first opener was the disappointing Browns, which seemed to be struggling for something just out of reach. But after Browns, those three cute girls I referenced above started setting up their instruments. And I was in for a delightful surprise.
Those Darlins hail from Murfreesboro, Tenn. and play a raucous brand of country-tinged rock ‘n’ roll with a side of Appalachian inspired punk.
One is a brunette, one a tall blonde and the other, a curly-haired shorty. But what made this threesome special was their musical ability and not their good looks, though that undoubtedly helped. Nikki, the brunette, had a voice like burnt caramel and played her baritone ukulele with a fierceness that can only be envied. Jessi actually soloed on her hollow bodied Epiphone and proved that girls can play country music as well as boys. And Kelley on bass finger picked those thick bass strings like they were blades of grass.
Those Darlins sing songs about stereotypical “country” subjects: eating chicken, getting drunk, driving drunk and men. But the band’s “we don’t give a damn attitude” helped them to deliver their lyrics without a hint of irony. (Example: “If you can’t handle crazy/ Go ahead and leave.” Indeed.)
The Soft Pack was up next. The group’s Southern California garage punk is brutal in its delivery yet extremely earnest, too. The band formerly known as The Muslims is eager to please, evidenced by its no nonsense performance. The members all appear to be concentrating very hard. Besides a little banter from singer Matt Lamkin, no one in the band said a word or moved from their role as musician.
Lamkin’s voice sounds like a croon and a shout at the same time. And with lyrics like “I was beside myself when I did you wrong” and “All the feeling’s gone and you’re still here” it’s hard to not fall hard for it.
The highlight of their set was “Parasites,” which features a heavy and rollicking bass line and Lamkin’s wails. This one really had the crowd swaying hips and shaking heads.
You can feel the California air all over the sound of The Soft Pack. It’s warm and inviting and fun, like a vacation.
In a way I visited Tennessee and California on Saturday night. In Brooklyn it was close to zero degrees outside.
