Part of my pride as a Birmingham native stems from the lush output of fantastic locally based music. Friends and I have often joked that if Birmingham had a better geographic location so many of the bands here would blow up. That quip may hit closer to home than I’d like; but the truth is I see too many acts that don’t make it out of the deep-south before they dissolve.
Holiness Church of The Valley
Grandaddy Ghostlegs and Holiness Church of The Valley are two groups I would have loved to seen more out of. Despite both having logged some time on the road out of state neither got the recognition they deserved.
Interestingly, both bands released posthumous material this past week. Both offerings are fantastic, which makes it all the more somber that the music in focus is from defunct groups.
Holiness Church of The Valley’s Joy Relents, Reality Demands is a total ripper. These songs are stark and uncompromising. If dirges had blast beats, this is what it would sound like. Plastering vocals linger over dark melodies reminding you that pain is real and unavoidable.
On the flipside GGEP from Grandaddy Ghostlegs bring less bleak compositions to the table. While there are some bits of melancholy woven through Ghostlegs’ repertoire it almost seems playful at times. The music is dense, catchy and undeniable. Thick-ass riffs give way to scorcher licks backed up by a water tight rhythm section. Listen to this shit and raise hell.
Grandaddy Ghostlegs