It’s easy for labels to bill bands as “the next so-and-so”, but often not very helpful for upcoming acts trying to carve out their own sound. But southern indie rockers The Weeks don’t mind being told that they sound like the Kings of Leon. “If you’re going to be compared to somebody, that’s not a bad band to be compared to,” lead singer Cyle Barnes told Goldenplec.
Barnes and his twin brother Cain formed The Weeks in their hometown of Jackson, Mississippi when they were still teenagers. Spurred by a tradition of southern rock – Barnes cites The Band and The Allman Brothers as influences – and a thriving music scene in Jackson, The Weeks came together. “When we were younger you could see a couple of different shows every weekend,” explains Barnes, “and they’d all be phenomenal bands”. The only problem was that it didn’t last. “All those bands have broken up now, and since they all went their separate ways, we wanted to do something.” Thus The Weeks were formed; “And eight years later here we are.”
The Weeks’ blend of southern rock, blues and an alternative post-grunge sound drew immediate comparisons to the Kings of Leon, and also resulted in The Weeks touring with country/punk band The Meat Puppets. It was during this tour that they were spotted by talent scout Seth Riddle. Riddle was in the process of searching for talent to sign to the Kings of Leon’s newly established record label Serpents and Snakes.
“When we were younger the Kings were one of our favourite bands,” admits Barnes. “It’s hard to say how much of our style is drawn from that or, I mean like it’s really hard not to sound similar since we’re both from the south. That effects the way you talk and the way you were raised.
"It’s one of those things, I mean, musically, we may not get much of our sound from them. But seeing them when we were growing up, seeing all their success, we were like, ‘they’re just a bunch of long-haired guys from the states’ and they could go to play for thousands of people, which is amazing.”
Since signing with Serpents and Snakes The Weeks have been on a course of frequent touring, playing industry showcases at SXSW and making regular trips across the US and Europe, including a number of support slots for the Kings of Leon themselves. “We toured with them over here and I mean they’re just a good bunch of southern dudes. And I feel like we all just hit it off when we first met, because our situations are similar, and our styles and everything.”
The band are now based in Nashville, Tennessee, a city which has experienced a bit of a musical renaissance and become the hub of alternative southern rock. It was here that The Weeks recorded their second album ‘Dear Bo Jackson’ earlier this year. The move from raw, hastily recorded EPs to a big studio was a huge change for the weeks.
“We’re normally used to only have a few days in the recording studio," said Barnes. "This is the first time we had a lot longer than that. And being in Nashville we had a lot of friends around us who all play music too. We had so many friends we could just call and be like, ‘Hey, we’re cooking out at the studio, like come hang out if ya’all wanna yell on a vocal track or beat on a drum or something.’ And luckily they were all very talented musicians so it didn’t just sound like the kitchen sink was being thrown at it.
“It was a unique experience, and we all very pleased with the result. It’s one thing when you record an album, it another thing when you record an album and once it’s finished, it sounds pretty much exactly how you want it to sound.”
And how much influence did your label bosses the Followills have on ‘Dear Bo Jackson’?
“They only came to the studio after we had recorded one of the last tracks, and they just sat there and listened to the album and didn’t tell us to do anything, they just said, ‘that’s good.’ They give us enough trust. We weren’t pressured to do things anybody else’s way once we got into the studio or anything.”
The Weeks were quick to get back on the road once they finished ‘Dear Bo Jackson’. They are currently touring the UK and Ireland, and played the Academy 2 last Saturday night (their second Irish show of 2013). “I’ve spent most of my time on the road,” admits Barnes. “More time on the road than at home, that’s for sure.”
But even though The Weeks are starting to tap into a wider audience and get past comparisons to other acts, they are in no hurry to leave the smaller venues behind. “We really enjoy playing in smaller venues. I like to be close to the crowd, because we dance a lot and we move around a lot, so if I can be close to see the crowd, and they’re dancing, then we can, involve ourselves with them. I feel like that’s why we’re there playing, so they can enjoy it, so I wanna be as close and as in their face as possible, you know.”