Dead Confederate
Dead Confederate EP
The Artists Organization/Razor & Tie
Dead Confederate sound a lot like what R.E.M. would sound like if Monster had never happened. Imagine an R.E.M. that instead of exploring their glam side in the ’90s, had buried their heads inside of the music of Afghan Whigs, Screaming Trees, and The Meat Puppets.
Dead Confederate’s album-teasing EP (a full-length is due out later this spring) accomplishes more in six songs than most albums fail to achieve in twice as many. Layer upon layer of psychedelic guitar fuzz reveal that this band is looking to the bygone ’60s for inspiration (“Get Out”), but melodically distorted pop songs like “Shadow the Walls” display some deep-seated Kurt Cobain worship. That last song doesn’t just point in the direction of Nirvana, it points to bands that directly affected Cobain’s songwriting, The Vaselines and Sonic Youth.
Opening song “Memorial Day Night” is a low-volume acoustic folk tune that, while not a bad song, is the weakest track on the EP. It’s an odd choice as an introductory song, and probably should have been reserved for later on the disc. Luckily this band comes alive when the feedback begins at the start of the following song, “The Rat.”
Not since Afghan Whigs has a band found that perfect balance between distortion and soul.
Dead Confederate: http://www.deadconfederate.com
