Artist Interviews

Q&A: Dead Confederate

By | Published on Tuesday 8 December 2009

Dead Confederate

Together since high school, Dead Confederate are an alternative rock band from Athens, Georgia, who first emerged on the local music scene in 2006 and were discovered by Gary Gersh, who is probably best known for being the man who signed both Nirvana and Sonic Youth.

After releasing an eponymous EP via The Artist Organization and gaining exposure at South By Southwest, the band released their debut album, ‘Wrecking Ball’, on TAO Records in 2008. Their sound is a mixture of alternative country and grunge, with comparisons made to the likes of Nirvana and My Morning Jacket. Having already supported Dinosaur Jr and A Place To Bury Strangers earlier this year, Dead Confederate have just been confirmed as the main support for J Mascis’s tour later this month. We spoke to band’s Hardy Morris to ask our Same Six Questions.

Q1 How did you start out making music?
My mother is a musician and so there was always music going on around the house early on. When I was around twelve she taught me [Neil Young’s] ‘Heart Of Gold’ on the guitar, and that was that…

Q2 What inspired your new album?

I’m not sure if there was one certain inspiration amongst the whole band, but the songs on this album are kind of dark and personal. That’s just where our heads were while we were writing them.

Q3 What process do you go through in creating a track?
Well, for the songs on ‘Wrecking Ball’, Brantley and I wrote them all on acoustic guitar and then brought them to the band. Once we all played them together they turned into these bigger, heavier tunes. As for recording the tracks, we did them all live together in one room. We wanted the album to have a live, raw feel.

Q4 Which artists influence your work?
We all listen to tons of music that is all over the place, so I couldn’t say specific artists that influence our music because there are just too many. It kind of goes without saying, but I think exposing yourself to as much music as possible makes for better personal work. I try to listen to a hundred songs before I write one.

Q5 What would you say to someone experiencing your music for the first time?
I wouldn’t really have anything to say, I don’t think. I would hope they get it or like it, it’s pretty straight forward. But I don’t think there’s anything you can say to make someone like your band, it’s up to the music and their taste.

Q6 What are your ambitions for your latest album, and for the future?
We have been fortunate enough to travel many places so far, but I hope this record helps us to see even more parts of the world. I also hope that it is decent enough for our label(s) to let us make another record(s) and allows us to continue seeing the world(s).

MORE>> www.deadconfederate.com and www.myspace.com/deadconfederate



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