Article and Photos by: Jason Robey
CHARLOTTE, NC — The Dead South brought their Chains & Stakes tour to Charlotte on Sunday, packing the house for their signature blend of bluegrass, folk, and outlaw country. The night was filled with boot stomping, finger picking, and dancing from the moment the lights dimmed and the first notes resonated through the air.
The evening kicked off with a short-but-captivating set by Jake Vaadeland & the Sturgeon River Boys. The group’s aesthetic was reminiscent of 1950s-era country, with Jake’s powder-blue suit and slicked back hair and Johnny Cash-style moves. Their impressive musicianship was the perfect warm-up for the show, getting the audience moving with a rousing cross of rockabilly and bluegrass.
The Hooten Hallers followed with a set of high energy punk-tinted rockabilly, tearing through their six-song show that brought to mind artists from ZZ Top to Morphine to the Stray Cats. Brash vocals, jazzy baritone sax, and heavy blues guitar layered over the bashing of swing beats defined the unique sound of the trio from the first notes of “Sticks & Stones” to the last ringing chords of “Rhythm & Blues.”
The Dead South took the stage with the dark brooding bluegrass tune “Blood on the Mind,” the opening track from their new album, Chains & Stakes. Their unique stage set was made up of three walls designed to look like an alley lined with buildings, with visual forced perspecitve giving the illusion of a long street, leading to a church at the end. The windows of the buildings were used for clever lighting schemes, and the minimal instrumentation allowed for a clean stage to cement the look.
Over the course of their 90-minute set, the group played about half of the new album, while sprinkling older fan-favorites like “Black Lung” and “Traveling Man.” They kept the tempo upbeat throughout the show, with the audience stomping, dancing, and singing along for the duration. The band’s simple instrumentation usually consists of mandolin, cello, banjo, and acoustic guitar, with a small kick drum at the front of the stage to occasionally punctuate the stomping and prompt the audience to join in the rhythm. The encore of “Broken Cowboy” and “Banjo Odyssey” was met with chants from the crowd hoping for one (or several) more. The Dead South tour for Chains & Stakes will head after the beginning of March, and back to the States and their homeland of Canada at the end of the summer for the rest of 2024. Check their socials and website for dates.