Dead Confederate - Wrecking Ball Review

Posted by Paul Hollingsworth on 10.24.2008

A young band from Athens, Georgia reintroduce Nirvana's early sounds to the masses. Should you come along for the ride?



Following on the heels of their critically acclaimed self titled EP earlier this year, Dead Confederate , a talented young band from Athens, Georgia recently released thier first full length album, Wrecking Ball . The most pronounced influence of the band, and in particular vocalist/guitarist Hardy Morris, is Kurt Cobain in particular and Bleach-era Nirvana in general. After nearly a month of non-stop play on my cd player, I feel confident in saying Kurt would be proud.

I should say I was 19 when Nevermind was released and at the time it completey pissed me off. Who were these lumberjacks from Seattle who whinned and mumbled their way through Pixies sounding songs? And exactly who the hell were they to suddenly become the it band and take precious MTV time from my favorites like Great White and Motley Crue ? Of course, we all know what happened next. . . Nirvana banished the excesses of hair metal into the dust bin of musical history, next to the equally hated and critically lampooned disco. . . then they conquered the world . . . then Cobain became something he hated and took his own life. Other bands over the last fifteen years or so have attempted to recapture Nirvana's spirit, My Morning Jacket being one of the most obvious examples, but I don't believe any band has done it as well as Dead Confederate.

The record leads off with Heavy Petting and The Rat . Two songs which basically rock and make you wish you were drinking your way through a bucket of a beer with a few thousand of your closest friends at an electric concert. These two songs in particular demand to be heard live. They contain an energy and aggressiveness which is extremely rare in the world of music these days. It's raw and it's live. Kudos go to the producers and technicans who managed to capture the band's obvious enthusiasm and emotion on this recording. The next song, Goner is one of the few songs which feel tries to hard to sound like Nirvana without adding any growth. It's fine as it is, but there's much better stuff ahead.

The fourth song is my personal favorite and one of the many reasons I believe this band has a great and productive future. The song is called It Was A Rose . All of the Nirvana things are there, but much more is going on than simply a band revealing their influences. The lyrics are the sort of thing every song writer wishes he/she could write: simple and direct, yet completely unique to Dead Confederate. It's an awesome feeling to hear a band find its sound and this song is a giant step in the right direction.
Lest anyone think they've only listened to Nirvana, the next few tracks include nods to Pink Floyd and so as not to offend their southern roots, some early Lynyrd Skynyrd as well. All bands from the south, even those 'college bands' from Athens, such as R.E.M., have something to say about the south's musical legacy. Even the band's name is drenched in what I believe makes most art, especially music, from the south impossible to mistake as coming from anywhere else. Dead Confederate make excellent use of their roots, and I'm not just talking about Morris' drawl. They understand the sense of longing and nostalgia for a time which was hardly golden, but perhaps not totally tarnished. I think every southern recording artist since Robert Johnson until the present day has had something to say about this uniquely southern point of view, and Dead Confederate, while of a completely different time, and thinking, no doubt of a different tarnished age, allow the shadows of the past to creep into the cracks of their music and lyrics.

The longest track on the record, Flesh Covered Canvas clocks in at a decidely unradio-friendly time of 12:08. The long reach of Pink Floyd reigns here, especially in the David Gilmour- like weeping guitar. It's another fine song and one to enjoy on vinyl with headphones and a beverage of your choice as you regard the future and allow the many textures and moods work and sooth you to your very soul. Much of today's 'indie' music is rightly lambasted for having no 'soul', no spark. This track shows how a good band can retain their 'indie-ness' and drench your soul at the same time.

The last track, As Well As Able , offers a fitting epilogue to the entire record. The southern roots, the Nirvana influence and that which is unmistakably Dead Confederate all come together in a solid whole. It leaves you with the hope of better things to come, but satisfaction with what you've been given. Every good piece of art, whether it's a painting or an album, should leave you with this feeling of completeness and yet a longing and an aching for more.

Complete Track Listing: (iTunes Version)
1. Heavy Petting
2. The Rat
3. Goner
4. It Was A Rose
5. Yer Circus
6. All The Angles
7. Start Me Laughing
8. The News Underneath
9. Flesh Covered Canvas
10. Wrecking Ball
11. As Well As Able

Check out the band's myspace: http://www.myspace.com/deadconfederate for songs and live performances.

The 411: So, should you come along for the ride? Absolutely. While almost every debut album is full of whomever influenced the musicians to pick up instruments in the first place, there is more than enough of Dead Confederate on this record to have faith that they are much more than the sum of their influences. For fans of Nirvana, Pink Floyd, the Pixies, southern rock and those who love to be able to say. 'I told you so' when a band breaks out and becomes one of the new torchbearers of rock and roll.

Final Score:  8.5   [ Very Good ]