THE DEAD SOUTH

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Nate Hilts and Danny Kenyon came up with the idea for a “rockin’ stompin’ bluegrass band”in 2012 while playing together in a short-lived alternative grunge band. After the grunge band’s demise, Colton Crawford and Scott Pringle, who learned banjo and mandolin respectively, joined Hilts and Kenyon to form the Dead South.

The band have referred to themselves as “Mumford and Sons’ evil twins”, a nod to their dark and often violent interpretation of the “aesthetic of old western pioneers”. Freitas of MusicExistence notes the “evil twin” comparison, but considers that, with Good Company, the band stands on its own merit in the folk world. Hilts and Kenyon had been listening to bluegrass bands Trampled by Turtles and Old Crow Medicine Show before forming their own band. They agreed that they wanted to perform their own version of traditional folk and bluegrass. Reviewer Timothy Monger on AllMusic considers that tradition to be “a gritty punk ethos with traditional bluegrass and old-time string band music”

A review of Good Company on Sputnik Music, notes that the band includes songs about the usual: Lovin’, cheatin’, killin’, and drinkin’.” Sputnik Music also points out that the band’s clothing style of ordinary white shirts, black trousers, black suspenders, and the occasional flat-brimmed hat is often mimicked by their fans.

Sarah Murphy says on Exclaim.ca that the band’s injection of folk and bluegrass sounds with a “punk rock ethos (not to mention a banjo player who’s a self-proclaimed metalhead), the band brings a fresh perspective to classic genres.”

Reviewer James Cooke suggests on MusicCrowns.org that the band’s “gritty vocals, aggressive guitar strumming, mandolin chops, banjo licks, and a steady kick drum to fuse it all together” deliver a unique sound that doesn’t exactly fit the traditional definition of bluegrass.

Cooke notes that the Dead South’s release of “In Hell, I’ll Be in Good Company” is labelled as bluegrass, but has caused fans to question whether the label is appropriate or not. He argues that since bluegrass has been influenced by Irish, Scottish, and African American music, the definition of bluegrass as a genre has become blurred

from WikiPedia