Band of the Week: Dead Confederate

Dead Confederate wears their Southern heritage on their collective sleeve. Let's face it, for whatever reason we all do. But this band does it very openly within their name, eschewing pretension and cutting right to the chase like a bayonet through soft Union soldier skin. Say it with me: DEAD CONFEDERATE. Immediately they've declared roughly where they're from (specifically it's Atlanta, Augusta, and Athens, Georgia) and just as quickly they've laid out for you in no uncertain terms that their music is going to resonate a bit differently than the superficial drawl of the Southern Rock your parents grew up listening to. All of this is to say that by calling themselves Dead Confederate they've laid it all on the line right away. A band with this name is either going to blow listeners away with a sound that's entirely their own, or they're going to sound an awful lot like Blueshammer from Ghost World. There's really no in between. So which is it?

Well, if you read EAR FARM with any regularity then you already know the answer. Last month we picked the band as one of the Top Ten Bands To Watch Out For in 2008 - now that we're nine days into 2008, it's high time we go ahead an reinforce our belief that Dead Confederate is simply one of the top up and coming bands in the US. Want proof? Read more and listen below, OR just watch the people go crazy for them at South by Southwest in March. At this point I'm simply assuming they'll be there; after all, this is a band that's bound to find their way onto a memorable lineup in Austin and thus end up on more than a couple of lists of "top acts seen at SxSW '08".

It occurred to me that I, as an average American male who grew up in North Carolina with parents originally from the Northeast, speak a multitude of variations on the English language. To make things easier on you the reader, I've broken down the remainder of this post into sections. Each one is a rephrasing of my opinions on Dead Confederate, spoken in a variety of "languages". Just simply scan down to the one you're most comfortable with and go from there.

Normal speak:

Dead Confederate plays solid, and moody, rock music. A mixture of Band of Horses and The Verve, with touches of Nirvana in the percussion, Sonic Youth in the guitar work, and early Radiohead and/or U2 in the vocals.

Blogger speak:

If you wanna know what your gonna be listneing to for the rest of the year and making lists of saying that its the best thing your listeneing to ever, hear is my favorite band of forever. Dead Confederate. So. Damn. Amazing. BEST. BAND. EVER.

Southern girl speak:

Oh my God ya'll. For real, that Dead Confederate band? Ya'll, they're good as shit.

Dude speak:

Dude. Fucking 'ay dude. This band rules. Seriously. No, dude. Seriously.

Midwestern accented speak:

Oh gosh, theeyat Dead Confederate beeyand is so darn fun!

Ebonics:

I know ya'lls been seein' talk of Ded Con Fed all up in them internets, right? But check this out: thang iz, they actually IS all that. And then some. Son.

Blockheaded white guy speak:

Bro. Broseph. Bromaldehyde... check out this band. Dead Confederate. Yup.

Blockheaded white girl speak:

Like, ohmygod. I mean, I don't even like like loud music, right? And then but there I am out at this bar - tons of cute boys, but all so nerdy... not that nerds aren't like uber-hotness right now, but whatever it doesn't mean they had to be all up in my face. Like, I know you've never spoken to a hot girl before jackass, but doesn't give you the right to drool all over me and spill beer on my shoes, GOD.

Matt speak:

Dead Confederate favors depth, darkness, romance, and emotion in the songs they create, and in at least one moment of all of their songs is the power to slay the listener with greatness. Each track evolves and builds upon itself, nearly imploding, before exploding in rhythmic waves of music as equally informed by post-punk as it is grunge; combining shoegaze, noise-rock, and good old-fashioned rock and roll into a mixture that draws you deeper into their world the more you listen. Further and further under their control you'll fall, until suddenly, it's too late. You'll be a ghost* before you know it.

(*ghost, in this sense, is meant to mean a Dead Confederate fan)

Listen:
"The Rat"
"Silver Rocket" (an EAR FARM exclusive, live Sonic Youth cover)

Visit Dead Confederate on MySpace.

See Dead Confederate live.