When San Diego rockers Delta Spirit broke out in 2005 with a rich, robust Americana-meets-punk sound, maturity seemed like a distant and unnecessary concept.

“We were 21-year-old kids,” said bassist Jon Jameson.

But now, after releasing its self-titled third LP to critical acclaim, stepping outside of their musical distinctions and embracing adulthood has proved to be the necessary course of action to stay fresh and interesting.

The band will bring this new face to a sold out 9:30 Club in Washington on Saturday.

“There is no love when bankrupt/ Just an empty gutted house/ And a grave,” sings once wild-child lead singer Matt Vasquez on album opener “Empty House.” He emotes like a rocker dad who can barely pay his bills – a progression far removed from their more carefree roots.

Fortunately for Delta Spirit and its fans, settling down personally does not mean setting down musically. Tracks like “Tellin’ The Mind,” with its crazy Tarzan screams and its driving punk bass line and “Tear It Up,” which bares many similarities to The Strokes’ “Machu Picchu,” are both rowdy and sonically relentless.

It’s a happy change following years of four chord folk-rock tunes that had Delta Spirit unfairly pegged as the finest A.M.-era Wilco knockoff in America.  

Now it’s about bringing the weird. And Jameson only confirms these forays into uncharted territory with his musical inspirations going into the record.

“I listened to a lot of ’80s,” he said. “Also, [I was listening to] the Cocteau Twins, New Order, Joy Division, My Bloody Valentine and PJ Harvey.”

The experimental spirit also extends to the tour setup, which is truly ambitious, especially for the group’s big-but-not-too-big following. Pioneered by keyboardist Kelly Winrich, the band built a lighting rig that will travel with them as they take their new material on the road.

“We’re still not a massive band, [but] we built our own set design,” Jameson said.

In the end, through all the added bells and whistles and studio tweaking, Delta Spirit is really just a working band with an admirable, de facto passion for making sweet, sweet music.

“We love this band,” Jameson said. “[We love] playing music, and we want to make this our career if people will let us.”

Saturday’s sold out show seems to indicate a resounding “Yes, please.”

Delta Spirit will perform at the 9:30 Club on Saturday. Doors open at 10 p.m. The show is sold out.

diversions@umdbk.com