Indie band The Weeks on road to musical success

Because many radio stations fear venturing outside the Top 40, it can be difficult to discover new music. However, rest assured that fresh and interesting bands do exist and thrive beyond our local stations.

Fresh out of high school, The Weeks, are a Southern indie rock quintet from Jackson, Miss. Their 2008 debut album “Comeback Cadillac” is filled with raw, desperate vocals and gritty lyrics that contradict the band’s astonishing average age of 18.

The album opens with its title track “Comeback Cadillac,” a hard-hitting punk rock song with a raging voice to match the unforgiving instruments. It’s a bold way to start the album, as it doesn’t quite match the rest of the songs, but it is interesting nonetheless. The catchy “Buttons” has everything needed to become a fairly big hit within the indie rock crowd. The album is most impressive for its variety in sound and influences that culminate in an electrifying mix of weary Southern ballads and youthful garage rock.

The band cites The Mars Volta, The White Stripes, and Wilco as influences, but the most frequent comparison is to Kings of Leon. In songs such as “Altar Girl” and “Buttons,” lead vocalist Cyle Barnes shares Caleb Followill’s appealing Southern slur, and the raucous, straight-from-the-garage music heavily recalls Kings of Leon’s distinct early sound.

“We appreciate the kind comparison,” said The Weeks’ lead guitarist Sam “Sammy D” Williams, but adding that “it’s growing old, considering that both of our bands are headed in completely different paths.”

Their album “Rumspringa,” released in June of 2009, is proof that they are still searching for their own comfortable niche – successfully, too. The vocals now have less of a country twang and have evolved into a darker and ever-building, post-punk moodiness. And there’s more to come.

“We . have another 10 or so songs ready to go for our next record,” Williams confirmed. They also have a national tour planned for the summer. So when you’re rocking out in your car or your room, try out The Weeks. In a couple of years, you’ll be bragging to your friends about having heard them first.

You can check out The Weeks at

last.fm or myspace.com, and “Comeback Cadillac” and “Rumspringa” are available at iTunes and Amazon.com.

Recommended Tracks: “Buttons,” “Sailor’s Song” and “Steamboat.”

Posted by Olivia Dowd on Feb 5 2010. Filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry