By Jon Dawson
Photo by LaMar George

This group may look familiar, but Dead Confederate is actually a new band — an ambitious revision of Atlanta’s now defunct Redbelly Band. While the former was steeped in the tradition of what was best about southern rock (Allman Brothers, Widespread Panic), Dead Confederate leaps off into an entirely new direction, mixing elements of psychedelia and grunge into its southern rock heritage. Along with other Atlanta-area bands like Sovus Radio and All the Saints, Dead Confederate may represent a harbinger of a new rise of psychedelic rock. The South has produced some of the most eclectic rock ‘n’ roll ever recorded; James Brown, Stax Records, Allman Brothers and R.E.M. are all products of the mysticism of the South, and Dead Confederate is one of the first southern bands to pull southern rock into the realm of modern rock.

The band is savvy with the internet, using the tools that all independent musicians need to survive without the backing of a huge conglomerate, which in most cases will end up killing the vibe and distancing bands from their true fanbases. However, Dead Confederate’s live shows have a fanatical following, and it is growing with every show as new converts are discovering the group’s experimental psychedelic brew every day.

Comprised of Hardy Morris (guitar, vocals), Brantley Senn (bass, vocals), Walker Howle (guitar), John Watkins (keys, vocals) and John Scarboro (drums), the band has come up with an interesting hybrid that mixes in the experimental side of Signal Path and Radiohead with the musical side of Medeski, Martin and Wood. “We really are interested in the sonic explorations of bands like Radiohead or Sigur Ros while still focusing on writing good songs with strong melodies. It wasn’t an easy decision to change our name and musical approach midstream like this, but as an artist, you have to go where your muse takes you. What we’re doing now is more in line with what we want to do, and the response that we’ve gotten so far from our recent live shows and the demos we’ve added to MySpace seems to be telling us that we made the right decision,” explains Morris. “They did a review of us in Creative Loafing where the guy said that ‘Southern rock does not begin and end with Duane Allman,’ and he’s right. That’s what we’re out to prove.”

The two new demos mentioned earlier, “News Underneath” and “Shadow The Walls,” pack a sonic wallop that conjures up memories of Pink Floyd in 1972 if played by Radiohead or Kasabian in 2006. Strong instrumental prowess serves the songs without overwhelming them, while direct, heartfelt lyrics pull you into the vibe like a fable that’s been around for hundreds of years. Fans of the Redbelly song “The Rat” will fall in love with Dead Confederate, as that song served as a catalyst for the kind of music the band is creating today. The band members have a keen sense of when to play for the song and when to crank out the jams, as both elements are necessary to produce an exciting live show, and an interesting record. Keyboardist John Watkins, in particular, seems to have incredible chops, but keeps them in check for the good of the song. This is exactly the type of attitude that will take Dead Confederate far beyond the Mason Dixon line.

The band recently won Atlanta’s Open Mic Madness and is currently working on a new studio album, its first under the Dead Confederate moniker. Dead Confederate has a full dance card on the live ciruit, playing shows over the next few months all over Georgia at such old haunts as Busters, Soul Bar and Smith’s Olde Bar. The group’s live shows are garnering rave reviews in publications such as Creative Loafing, The Journal and The Metro Spirit. Hittin’ The Note magazine went so far as to proclaim Dead Confederate “the future of southern music.” Such praise should not be taken lightly, as these guys are true musicians, and in today’s world of commercial hip-hop drivel, nu-metal blandness and MTV-musical homicide, it’s a great shaft of light in a landscape of vast darkness.

www.deadconfederate.com