Album Notes

My latest review is on “Welcome to the South”, the sophomore effort from Rebel Syndicate. While their first disk, “The Family Album”, was a wild and unkempt throwback to southern rock’s golden age, the new cd really highlights what makes them such a great live band. Not only do their songwriting and musicianship shine, but their rich southern harmonies are really brought to the forefront. Of course, it helps when your producer, Ricky Lee Phelps, is a Grammy winner, and CMA Producer of the Year. Ricky Lee, known to most folks as the lead singer for Kentucky Headhunters & the duet Brother Phelps, also adds his distinctive vocals to “Beer Don’t Bitch”, a rowdy honky-tonk ode to man’s best friend (beer).
The record kicks off with the title track “Welcome to the South”, a southern rock anthem that leaves no doubt where these boy’s roots lay. With southern fried slide guitar and a rebel pride theme, it’s sure to be blaring from many a truck window for years to come. “Slow Walkin”, along with the fore mentioned “Beer Don’t Bitch”, is a pure honky-tonker. Referring to a southern funeral, “slow walkin, sad singin, fried chicken eatin”, it’s a fun country rocker about getting in over your head. However, don’t think for a minute Rebel Syndicate are one trick ponies. As with their live show, they slide easily between, so called, genres. From the new country sound of “Anything but Me” and “Saving Grace” and the Eagles like tone of “This Town”, to the lush heartbreaker “Drive On”, and they sound authentic in all of them. It’s a diverse collection of songs, including southern gospel inspired sound of “All But Gone” and the delightfully quirky “Settle Down”. The albums highlight, however, may be it’s darkest song. “Bang Bang”, the final track, is a brooding and unrepentant snapshot of the self proclaimed “only guilty man” in prison, whose sole regret is that he didn’t finish the killing he started. One part Skynyrd, one part Pink Floyd and a touch of the darker side of Johnny Cash, it’s a stunning original and a perfect end to a great album from “Jackson Counties original white trash band”. Enjoy!

L.V. Walton
Freelance Music Critic