We Hitch on the ‘Saddle of Southern Darkness’ with Eponymous Album

Describing their style as “Evil Country”, Saddle of Southern Darkness blend the influences of metal artists with traditional country. The result – nothing like you’ve ever heard before!

Formed in 2015, Saddle of Southern Darkness is made up of brothers Trent and Chase Williams, on vocals, guitar and mandolin, and vocals, guitar and dobro respectively, with Mark Rossi playing the upright bass. The band’s unique sound was inspired by metal artists such as Bathory, Dissection, Grave et al, and traditional country artists like Hank Williams (Senior, Junior, and III), George Jones, and Wayne Hancock, to name a few.

Trent and Chase, Owensboro Kentucky natives, relocated to Denver, and spent a long summer living and travelling in a camper in the Colorado mountains. This proved the perfect location to record the nine songs which went into their self-titled album, later mixed and mastered by Trent. The brothers teamed up with Mark, formerly with Damnation Country band, Bedlam Bastards, and have since then been performing and building up their fanbase.

‘Saddle of Southern Darkness’, from first hearing, is a great album. The listener doesn’t know what to expect, it’s all slide guitar and spaghetti western – but the lyrics are extraordinary: gruesome tales of ghosts, demonic possession, murder, shallow graves “left without a name”, with titles to match. ‘Blasphemous Bill’ (the Bill of the title was born of a Christian woman during an eclipse, and was possessed – “pushing his old wooden cart full of body parts”); ‘Hangin’ in a Tree’, the tale of a condemned man meeting his fate.

It’s hard to choose a favourite from the album: but if forced, we might say opening track, ‘Compelled to Dig’, or the aforementioned ‘Blasphemous Bill’, as both songs illustrate best the talent of Saddle of Southern Darkness’ members. The trio are all talented musicians, and it’s this skill that further compels the listener.

‘Saddle of Southern Darkness’ was released in November last year and is available to buy from CD Baby.

You can find Saddle of Southern Darkness online on Facebook and their website. You can also see them perform live, on February 7 at Lion’s Lair, and at The Marquis Theatre on Febuary 15. Both venues are in Denver.