The Growlers in Dallas: “It’s a shame you have to live in the shadow of [Austin]”

The radio needs bands like The Growlers.

DEEP ELLUM — The Growlers graced Dallas with their presence Thursday night, performing for a plethora of seemingly eclectic individuals gathered around the stage at Club Dada. Having played to what was bound to be a more rowdy audience in Austin the night prior, front man Brooks Nielsen proclaimed, “It’s a shame you (Dallas) have to live in the shadow of another Texas city (Austin). You’re still Texans. You still got big b*lls … and little n*pples.”

Thanks, Brooks, you da man.

Having been acclaimed for their distinct “beach goth-rock” sound resonating from Costa Mesa, California, The Growlers are indeed bringing forth strange yet tasteful elements to the pop-rock genre. They’re my favorite band right now because of it. The Growlers aren’t one of those bands that you spout off to your wannabe musically affluent friends as “cool” just because you’re certain few people know about them – they actually sound fantastic. The hipster side of me hates to say it, but radio needs bands like The Growlers.

A few songs into the setlist, the crowd really came alive to the single from their latest entitled “One Million Lovers.” The performance admittedly inspired me to dance by myself and then step out to call my ex-girlfriend, cause “she’s the only one fer sure.” Alas, I was directed to voicemail … It was all made alright, however, when the choppy, honest tune “Wandering Eyes” began to play and I realized again that all that soulmate stuff is probably nonsense. And then, of course, the song “Acid Rain” made me smile ear-to-ear as per usual. Great music does these sorts of things.

I had the pleasure of picking up their new album Hung at Heart ahead of its January 22 U.S. release date at the show. The album is a near-seamless extension of albums prior, which is what the band seems to have been going for. Having recently abandoned Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys as a producer for the project, they opted instead for their distinguished homegrown sound once again. I’m willing to bet you won’t hear any complaints about that from fans. From the minute they took the stage at Dada to the moment I half-drunkenly went home, The Growlers had my attention. And I don’t plan on taking the CD out of the dash anytime soon. (Yeah, I bought the CD. Not the vinyl like all the cool kids. My Cadillac does not play vinyls. Forgive me.)

Head on over to The Current to listen to or download “One Million Lovers” here.