Fresh off a European tour, The Dead South has no plans to slow down.
The Regina-based band is set to begin its Western Canadian tour this week, with nine shows in 11 days, including in Jasper on Nov. 30 at the Olive Bistro and Lounge.
鈥淚t was probably the most successful [European tour] we鈥檝e had yet,鈥� said Colton Crawford, an hour after landing in Toronto.聽
鈥淲e鈥檝e put together what we feel is a pretty good set and it went over really well in Europe so we鈥檙e excited to bring it to the West.鈥�
The four-piece band blends elements of folk, bluegrass, country and rock to create boot-stompin鈥� acoustic music.
Besides the tempo of their music, the first thing most listeners will notice is Nate Hilts鈥� gritty vocals and Crawford鈥檚 blazing banjo licks. It鈥檚 also hard to ignore Scott Pringle鈥檚 soaring harmonies and mandolin chops and Danny Kenyon鈥檚 prominent cello melodies.
Part of the band鈥檚 distinctive sound can be traced back to the member鈥檚 musical influences, which include some of the biggest punk bands of the 80s and 90s, including Pennywise, Bad Religion, Strung Out, Lagwagon and The Casualties.
鈥淲e all grew up listening to a lot of punk and classic rock so that influence definitely sneaks in there as well,鈥� said Crawford.
鈥淢ost of the songs are just stories about people doing bad things or getting themselves into some sort of trouble. We鈥檙e all big fans of Tarantino movies and spaghetti westerns and horror films so I guess that also creeps into the lyrics.鈥�
The band released its first full-length album Good Company in April 2014 and hasn鈥檛 looked back.
Shortly after the release of the album, The Dead South played at Canadian Music Week in Toronto where the band caught the attention of J枚rg Tresp, manager of Devil Duck Records, based out of Hamburg, Germany.
Tresp immediately signed the band, released its album in Europe, and booked several European tours.
鈥淚t definitely was a lucky break,鈥� said Crawford, reflecting on the moment.
Beyond its music, the band also takes pride in not taking itself too seriously, as is evident on its website, where the members have written fictional biographies about themselves.
鈥淲e definitely don鈥檛 take ourselves too, too seriously,鈥� said Crawford. 鈥淲e do put a lot of work into our music and especially into our live show, but all the work we put into it is to make it a fun and enjoyable experience.鈥�
Since the band鈥檚 inception three years ago, the group has played dozens of festivals, including the Regina Folk Festival, Ness Creek Music Festival, Gateway Music Festival, Juno Fest 2013鈥�14 and the Grey Cup Festival in 2013, among others.
Advance tickets for the Nov. 30 show are $10 and music begins at 7:30 p.m.
Paul Clarke [email protected]
