Fueled with a new found (and very welcomed) sex appeal while looking ever so refreshed, Those Darlins are back with their all new sophomore album entitled Screws Get Loose. Nikki, Jesse, Kelley, and Linwood continue their quest to have constant fun, drink the stiff drinks, and tour the country all while leaving a lasting impression on all who join in their nightly rock n roll shambles.
Even amidst non-stop touring, minus a brief timeout due to pair of broken bones in Nikki Darlin’s forearm after she lost a battle with Ohio terrane, the band was quick to record a follow up to their 2009 debut.
Screws Get Loose, in reference to the screws used to hold Nikki’s bones in place last summer, was released once again on Oh Wow Dang Records.
Known for being a more of a country / punk / garage rock sounding act, the foursome have switched things up a tad and added a nice indie rock style to their sound in their mix. One of the coolest aspects of this change is hearing Linwood, the band’s lone male drummer, lend his pipes on the album as well as help write some of the tracks. The girls still trade off with vocals throughout the album keeping it catchy and all so fun.
The title track “Screws Get Loose” open up things with a song carrying a couple of references to why screws were needed in the first place. The new sound coming from the quartet was good and quite the shock to hear. It was almost as if Those Darlins left their country sounds on the porch in Murfreesboro and headed off to the big city for a entirely new prospect.
“Be Your Bro” hands down is my favorite track on the album. Having heard it months earlier at a live show of theirs last Fall, I fell in love with the Darlins a little harder because of this track. Singing of how the girls just “wanna run and play in the dirt” while said guys “just wanna stick it in” just proved how real the girls are and how not afraid they are to tell it how it is. Singing “I may have girly parts but I have a boy’s heart” hopefully will throw a hint at any Darlin chasing fellow, or will it?
“Let U Down” premiered Linwood’s vocals, an improvement in the direction of the band if you ask me. Not that there was anything wrong with the girls taking vocal duties throughout the songs, but Linwood has himself a very fitting voice that goes perfectly with the music that they all create. This is a track that needed to be heard.
“Mystic Mind” was a trippy track that didn’t necessarily fit the rest of the album but was hard not to listen to. “$” was a step back for a moment into what I previously was used to coming from the Darlins and their group vocals.
“Starving for something and it ain’t your touch” start off the hilarious “Fatty Needs A Fix”. The track easily is a continuation to “The Whole Damn Thing” off their debut album, as a drunken end to a night out required some immediate stomach pampering and nothing more than that.
“Waste Away” put a halt to the party with a direct message to a certain someone to knock off the hardcore partying. This track reached back to material from their previous album. “BUMD” closed the album with what sounded like to me something pulled from the 60’s. The song differed from the others with more proof of how much talent these four musicians possess.
It was almost a shock to hardly hear any country driven tracks on this album, but it’s just proof that Those Darlins are maturing into an even more of an amazing act. Shorter than I would have liked, Screws Get Loose is a great album from start to finish with plenty of tracks to help you shake your baby-maker throughout thanks to all of the members coming together and doing what they like to do best. If you were not a fan of their first release, you might just want to pop this one in and see if it catches your fancy.
