This Wild Darkness Premiere Their Timeless Single “Dawn Rider”

Collaborations come in various forms, like This Wild Darkness, which you may view as a fairly unlikely alliance. This team of highly accomplished artists is glad to premiere their new single, “Dawn Rider.” This is the lead single from the band’s debut EP, The Notorious Memphis Rains, for release on October 25th. “Dawn Rider” is a sneak peek of what is to come from this heavyweight ensemble of artists. The band is led by singer-songwriter Tommy Marz, who is well known in his native Detroit music scene and for his role as founder of the Tommy Marz Band. “Dawn Rider” blends different eras of rock, a one-two punch of proficient acoustic and electric guitar playing. It speaks to the many influences that were present within the songwriting process.

This Wild Darkness is a super-collaboration like no other. Marz has brought together an impressive list of musicians from vastly different musical backgrounds, all playing under one roof. The band also features Arion Salazar, previously of Third Eye Blind; Chuck Bartels, known for his work with Sturgill Simpson; Jack Hues, frontman of Wang Chung; Scott Hill, guitarist from Skid Row; Slim Gambill, guitarist for Lady Antebellum, and former Smashing Pumpkins guitarist Jeff Schroeder. To bring together such a jaw-dropping lineup of musicians is nothing short of remarkable.

Sharing with us the spontaneous nature in which “Dawn Rider” was conceived, Marz tells us:

“It’s one of those songs where the title matches up with the nocturnal nature of recording. When we were trying to get ‘Dawn Rider’ finished up, Jeff Schroeder was in Los Angeles and I was in Detroit. We are talking throughout the day and exchanging ideas. At around 11 pm, Jeff said, ‘I’m going to change my strings and give this another pass.’ I told him, ‘No problem, I’ll be up, so just hit me up when you get it.’

“Now it’s 3 am in Detroit, dawn is literally preparing to break through the curtains and I’m fast asleep on the couch watching ’80s hair metal music videos on YouTube. My phone vibrates and wakes me up and Jeff asks if I’m up and can talk. We get on the line and he says he just finished and really likes what he laid down, and he’s wondering if I can give it a listen. I fire up my software, turn on my studio monitors and crank it. It was perfect! Those are the guitars you hear during the solo and the outro solo. He absolutely nailed the soul of the song.”

The building blocks of This Wild Darkness were laid in 2021 at a charity show titled “For The Crew,” which benefited the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund. On that evening, Schroeder, Hill, and Marz all came together for a cover of KISS’ “Cold Gin.” The event raised money for road crew members who were put out of work by the pandemic at the time. Marz and Schroeder began to form more of a collaborative bond, and by the summer of 2023, This Wild Darkness had become more of a focused endeavour.

The ultimate aim of This Wild Darkness is to stay focused on your life and the decisions you make along the way. Marz was inspired by an article he read in The New Yorker about a man who had AIDS. The man maintained a raw and honest approach to life even in his final months, and this really resonated with Marz. This Wild Darkness is here to celebrate not only music but also reality. Be who you are, life is what you make of it, and don’t get caught up with daydreaming. The grass isn’t always greener on the other side, so let’s all maintain some perspective and cherish life for what it is.

The Notorious Memphis Rains Track Listing:

“The Wild Darkness”
“Dawn Rider”
“Phantom Moon”
“Night Drive Rx”
“The Wild Darkness (Reprise)”

This Wild Darkness “Dawn Rider” single artwork