Lucero

There's a darkness on the edge of Lucero's town. The foursome comes from Memphis, which seems a million miles away from the golden smile of Nashville -- at least in light of the act's defiantly titled new album, Nobody's Darlings. On the disc, Lucero works solidly in the Uncle Tupelo...

By Christian Schaeffer

October 13, 2005

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "12017618",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17242653",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261320",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261321",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

There's a darkness on the edge of Lucero's town. The foursome comes from Memphis, which seems a million miles away from the golden smile of Nashville -- at least in light of the act's defiantly titled new album, Nobody's Darlings. On the disc, Lucero works solidly in the Uncle Tupelo tradition, dancing around the nexus of country and rock and singing about hard drinking, small-town suffocation and dumb love. Singer Ben Nichols is able to sound comfortably familiar while making music that's far from comforting; his mix of Will Johnson's lonesome keen and Eric Bachmann's somber rumbling is the band's ear-grabbing centerpiece. If Memphis music has one signifier, it's untainted grit, and in keeping with this tradition, Lucero lets the stains show, leaving a class picture that includes a bloody lip and a cheap haircut.

KEEP WESTWORD FREE... Since we started Westword, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Denver, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.