The Dead South Kick Off Their Australian Tour This Friday…

Canadian Bluegrass four-piece The Dead South kick off their Australia and New Zealand this week which will be their biggest shows yet, following two sold out tours across the last two years. The Dead South have never been about constant reinvention, but about full commitment to their own singular way. With confidence in their sound and style and trust in each other, The Dead South arrive at the cusp of explosive global success in an enviable, and well-earned, position: total autonomy. It doesn’t really matter what you call their music – progressive bluegrass, alternative Americana, country, folk and western, what matters is that this is theirs, and people from all different backgrounds, beliefs, experiences, languages and ages love it.

True blue right through, The Dead South don’t shy away from ruffling traditionalists’ feathers from time to time, as they flawlessly execute banjo rolls and lightning-fast mandolin tremolos, three-part harmonies and songs of classic themes -murder ballads, disloyalty, ghosts and the like, all with a wink and a smile. As they continue their climb to the top, The Dead South have learned an important lesson: If you’re going to be outsiders, you’d better be great.

Confirmed by the passion of their Dead South cosplaying fans, who go to concerts in the band’s signature look, this four-piece acoustic set from the middle of the Canadian prairies have found their people. Good Company, as they call themselves, is a global community of vastly dissimilar folks who might not see eye to eye, but who stand shoulder to shoulder at the gigs. Front man Nate Hilts talks to Hi Fi Way about the tour.

You must be getting really excited for the start of the Australian Tour?
Friday, yeah, in Perth.

How do you prepare yourself for such a long flight out to Australia?
You try to stay awake as long as you can so that you can hopefully fall asleep on the ride over.

With so many shows sold out on this run, does it feel good knowing there’s plenty of love for you guys here in Australia?
It really does. Also, it’s winter at home right now, so you get to come to good weather. Every time we’ve been to Australia, the people have been so inviting, and the vibes are phenomenal. Knowing they’re buying tickets and want to come to the shows makes that long flight worth it.

And the shows are getting even bigger, that’s got to be heartening too?
Yeah, absolutely. Across the world, people are enjoying us, it’s great.

Are you looking to focus more on the new album on this tour run, or is it a bit of everything?
We typically like to give a bit of everything. We’re at the tail end of our Chains & Stakes album run, so you’ll get a chunk of that album, but also a few songs from every album. That’s typically how we go.

How has the rest of the tour been going in recent months?
It’s been really good. We’re a year and a half into this album cycle, and people are still wanting to come and listen everywhere we go. It’s heart warming.

With everyone wanting you in their city yesterday, you must have to start thinking ahead about what’s next once the album cycle ends?
Yeah, we typically plan about a year ahead for touring. We work with booking agents and management to look at markets we’ve done recently, ones we haven’t done in a while, and new places we should try. Just a few weeks ago we went to Brazil for the first time because of the interest there, and I’m so happy we did, it was awesome.

With the relatively new album Chains & Stakes, have you been stoked with how fans and music lovers have embraced it?
Very much so. When you put out a new album, you want it to be just as good or better than the last. I think we really got that with this one. We had a great time writing it, and recording in Mexico City gave it a cool energy. I’m quite happy with it.

Does being somewhere like Mexico bring a different element to the album or enhance the experience in a way that comes across in the recording?
Yeah, the energy and vibe there was so relaxed. Because we were in such a calming environment, we had time to get out cool ideas with zero pressure or stress. I think that comes through, we were able to express what we wanted effortlessly.

Is it harder to push the boundaries of what bluegrass is and isn’t?
For sure, but we don’t look to do that, it just naturally happens. Having stemmed from bluegrass, punk, metal, classical, folk, and more, we just put down what we’re feeling. Someone comes up with an idea, and we all make it happen. There’s no pressure to push boundaries, more just what haven’t we done that we think we could do?

What influences that inspire your lyrics?
In terms of lyrical content, it’s usually tragedy or humour. That’s been the biggest influence. Finding a tragic event or story to write about comes effortlessly and shapes how the music sounds. If I’m singing something sad and melancholic over a major chord, everyone contributing their parts is influenced by that contrast.

Are you ideas already in your mind or formed in some way before you actually start recording them? Do you have a vision in mind of how you want it to sound, or is there a bit of improvising a little bit and just see where it goes?
It’s a lot more improvising. I mean, for this one, or the last album, I had maybe three or four songs ready to go, that they had heard. So then there was another handful of songs that I didn’t even know if I was going do anything with them. So then it’s a little mix of both, but a lot of improvisation comes into it, kind of closer to the end.

Does the improvised nature come over to the live show, which makes each show a little bit unique as well?
Yeah, to a degree. We definitely try to get a setlist that we run with for a while, and it’s not necessarily always the exact same songs, but it’s following the same formula, and some songs will interchange out. So, in that way, we’re getting ourselves prepped for trying to nail this thing. But then there’s going to be the improvisation that happens between songs, or you make a little mistake in a song, and everyone kind of goes with it, and then you riff off that. So, again, it’s a little more structured, but it’s fun.

What do you love about touring Australia?
The first time, what really got me is that you come across the furthest place that I’d ever been in the world, and it’s so different, but so similar. You know, you’re getting a European vibe, like, British, with maybe some of the buildings and stuff. I’m not saying Australian accents sound British, but it’s closer to our ear than further, with this phenomenal landscape of prehistoric time, almost. So I think just coming here and seeing what it looks like and getting to feel that is something that I look forward to always, regardless of the weather.

Is Australia the last stop on the Australian tour before the band stops for a bit of a breather and reset for next year?
Yeah, this is the last hurrah for 2025, so it’s a good way to cap it off.

What do you see 2026 holding for the Dead South?
So, in 2026, starting in February, we’re going to head to London, and start recording our new album. After that, we’re going yo take the year, and we’ll do a little bit of touring, but a little lighter than normal and basically to start prepping for 2027 when we release the album, and then hit it hard again.

What does downtime look like for you? Can you switch off from music completely?
Oh yeah, easy. There’s times where I come home and I don’t touch my guitar for weeks.

Interview By Rob Lyon

Catch The Dead South on the following dates, tickets from Live Nation…