The Dirty Soul Revival

One more for the good times: The Dirty Soul Revival to rock Sylva
It ain’t dead.

Rock-n-roll. In an era when sugar-coated pop stars and polished country acts are atop the charts, one wonders if there is any shred of real rock swagger and attitude anymore. Where is that sound and tone that pushes sonic barriers and actually challenges you to think outside the box with lyrical content that isn’t about riverbanks and moonshine, but rather focuses on the raw elements of the human condition?
Sure, if you look below the surface of the mainstream, you’ll find exactly what you’re looking for — the real deal. And when one digs deeper to see what’s out there in Asheville and greater Western North Carolina, The Dirty Soul Revival rises to the surface.

“I think that Asheville’s attitude is very cutting edge and avant-garde and is one of the only places I’ve been where music is celebrated for being unique and weird without question,” said lead singer/guitarist Abraham Anderson.

Haywood Heating and AC
Alongside Anderson, Brandon Hill (guitar), Jason Taylor (bass) and Jerard Sloan (drums) make up the quintet. They’ve been rolling their way through every sticky floor barroom and back alley dive in Southern Appalachia with their hard edge brand of rock. Think of a darker, dirtier version of The Black Keys, or perhaps, if The Allman Brothers leaned more towards Steppenwolf, all with a steadfast motto of “no compromise.”

“It’s a bit trite to say, but honestly I just want to play the songs that I write with the amazing group of guys that I play with to be heard,” Anderson said. “At the same time, I would like to be able to do what I do without compromise and have people like it and have it just left alone by the industry. I think the first thing ‘the industry’ does is take the things that make a musician or songwriter or band great and start chiseling away at it to make it fit within the mold of what people are used to hearing, or what format best sells ad space.”

And with the melodies spinning around his head, Anderson looks to put to paper the quirks and daily instances that may bother others, but he looks at as creative energy.

“Anger, and things that annoy me in the world would be probably the largest well I draw from lyrically,” he said. “As far as music, I just try to come up with stuff that I would like to listen to that hasn’t been played yet, which is difficult at times because it has all been played before, and written, and sung. The only thing that makes any music original anymore is that fact that it comes from inside you, because people always play things differently, even when they are not trying to — and that’s what makes it new.”

Pointing to the key rock influences of the golden era of AM radio, Anderson and his group aim to pay homage to those heroes, and also preserve their legacy through live performance and studio recordings.

“Musical heroes used to range anywhere from Elvis to Sinatra to Hendrix. Now they are Beiber, Beyonce and Swift. Not saying there is anything wrong with it, it just doesn’t really inspire me personally,” Anderson said. “Music is a byproduct of human existence and I think it generally reflects the culture and mood of times it is written and I think that is only going downhill. I think there was an honest belief that people could change the system and make the world better then, now I think we are to preoccupied with technology to even live in this moment, to even be a real part of one another’s lives.”

Onstage, The Dirty Soul Revival shoves the listener to the back wall, where you start gyrating in ways you figured didn’t occur anymore. Hand gestures with your index and pinky fingers in the air. This isn’t your run-of-the-mill Saturday night broken beer bottle tribute band playing worn-out rock classics. This is rock-n-roll, in its purest form.

“Music is to me the single greatest thing man has ever done. To be a part of that in any way is a great thing to us,” Anderson said. “You can be the most skilled musician, or the most talented singer, but without putting yourself out for the world to see, it really doesn’t amount to much. What I respond to in music — and I think most people do — is not skill or talent. It’s when you genuinely feel that they are letting you in on something personal. Letting you be a part of an experience that they had. Whether it is sad, or triumphant or shameful. It’s when somebody really bares their soul to the world that really powerful music is made.” - Garret K. Woodward

The Dirty Soul Revival — (from left) Abraham “Drinkin’” Anderson, Jennifer “Trixie Laroux” Anderson and Gabe Farmer — will open for Shooter Jennings on Saturday night at “The Shed” in Maryville.
COURTESY OF THE DIRTY SOUL REVIVAL

Abraham Anderson, a.k.a. “Abraham Drinkin’,” tried writing songs since he was 20 years old and first picked up an acoustic guitar, but he could never seem to force the words out the way he wanted.

Almost three years ago, they came tumbling out on their own, the frontman for The Dirty Soul Revival told The Daily Times this week.

“I think I was trying too hard to write in this vein or that vein, but I was driving home from work one day about 2 ½ years ago, and this song just popped in my head, and it just kind of wrote itself,” he said. “It was about my wife, and ever since then, I don’t really try. Sometimes I’ll come up with an idea for a phrase I like if I’m listening to Charlie Patton or really old blues, and because I played banjo up until a few years ago and listened to a lot of old bluegrass, sometimes some ideas come out of that. I love old country, too — Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash — and the Allman Brothers, which is one of my favorite bands ever, so there’s a lot of variety. A lot of it is raunchy blues-rock, but there’s some funk, some country and some straight-up rock ‘n’ roll in there, too.”


Saturday night, the Asheville, N.C.-based band will get a chance to open up for the son of one of Anderson’s heroes — Shooter Jennings, Waylon’s boy, in a show at “The Shed” at Smoky Mountain Harley-Davidson in Maryville. It’s a big step for a band that’s only been active for the past couple of years.

Born and raised in Cushing, Okla., Anderson started out playing banjo. He didn’t set out to pursue a career in music, but he wanted to play more bluegrass, and he wanted to get out of Oklahoma, which he describes as “ungodly hot in the summer,” and some friends suggested North Carolina. He headed east, destined for Raleigh, but when he stopped in Asheville, the temperature was a comfortable 70 degrees.

“I just kind of fell in love with it; it’s beautiful, and I said, ‘I’m moving here,’” he said. “I’d never been east of Nashville, but I’ve always been fascinated by music from the South in general.”


That was in 2009; his wife, Jennifer “Trixie Laroux” Anderson, came with him, and with her on drums and him on guitar and growling and howling into the microphone, they began to shape what would become The Dirty Soul Revival into a musical force of nature. Imagine if one member of The Black Keys grew up out back of a rough-hewn juke joint back in the Mississippi pines and the other learned to play stomping barefoot on Smoky Mountain barn floors, and you’ll get an idea of what the band sounds like. It’s a successful romantic and musical partnership, Anderson said, that’s helped the two out-of-towners survive and thrive in the bustling Asheville scene.

“We first started dating about 15 years ago, and when I first met her, she was 14 and absolutely infatuated with the Beatles and Zeppelin and all this great rock from the ’60s and ’70s, and I wasn’t listening to anything like that,” he said. “She’s been into good music her whole life, and that really helps me a lot. It’s hard for me to say what kind of music I like, but I think the common denominator I find in everything I love is, for lack of a better term, soul. Not necessarily soul music, even though I love Otis Redding, but people singing something they believe in — something that’s more than just a song or a radio hit.

“It’s a part of them, and I just try to do the same thing. I sing and play what I feel, and hopefully some of that gets through. It’s just dirty and honest, and even though I may not technically be the best singer, if you get out there and belt it hard enough like you mean it, people will respond to it.” - Steve Wildsmith

ART PROJECTS: The Dirty Soul Revival is headlining an upcoming benefit for Make-A-Wish and expects to have the band's new album available for purchase at the show. Photo courtesy of the band
UPDATE: “American Idol” winner Caleb Johnson has been added to the performance lineup, according to organizer Mike Brinkley. Johnson is scheduled to perform several songs with White Soul.

WHAT: The 15th annual Make-A-Wish Christmas Party benefit concert

WHERE: The Orange Peel


WHEN: Thursday, Dec. 22, at 7:30 p.m.

WHY: For many musicians, taking the stage at a renowned concert venue can represent a dream realized. But a roster of local performers will go beyond self fulfillment at the 15th annual Make-A-Wish Christmas Party Benefit Concert. Proceeds from the event go to Make-A-Wish, a nonprofit that sends children with life-threatening illnesses on their chosen adventure of a lifetime.

“The entire venue will have Christmas decorations,” says Jason Taylor, who is co-organizing the event with Mike Brinkley of Wicked Quick Promotions. Meanwhile, a silent auction will offer eclectic items like bar stools and a neon clock from motor oil brands Shell, Pennzoil and Quaker State (Brinkley is employed by their distributor), a gift bag from Highland Brewing Co., Painting with a Twist gift certificates and a two-night stay at Crowne Plaza Resort.

The main attraction, however, is the live music lineup, which includes sets by White Soul (with guest artist and “American Idol” winner Caleb Johnson sitting in for several songs), The Log Noggins, The Company Stores, Up Dog, Colby Deitz, Andalyn and Rachel Alleman. For the headlining slot, Taylor’s band The Dirty Soul Revival will summon a sound he describes as “funky, gritty, Southern rock rooted in the dirty blues,” and Andrew Scotchie will join as a guest musician.

“We just finished our brand-new record [Welcome to the Black] in Kentucky with the Kentucky Headhunters’ producer and guitar player Richard Young,” Taylor says. “We’re trying to get it all zipped up and ready to throw out at this event.” - Kat McReynolds