Exclusive Song Premier: “Magnolia”
Scott Zuppardo
Posted On October 15, 2018
“This is a record about mistakes”, chides Cleveland, Mississippi’s Will Griffith, aka The Great Dying, in reference to his debut effort Bloody Noses & Roses due out November 16th. We’ve all chalked up our fair share of mistakes and outtakes, some scour over them for ages while others take the pen to paper and work them out as art set to music. Griffith stumbled upon the boys at Dial Back Sound in Water Valley, MS in his quest to make a full-length and what’s transpired only occurs when true kindred spirits are in tune to the same cosmic plane. Studio owners and co-producers Matt Patton (Drive-by Truckers, Dexateens) and Bronson Tew worked tirelessly to flesh out Griffith’s vignettes into delectable, vinyl ready morsels about his travails and assails.
Pulling from folk writers before him with his own spin on the singer/songwriter format, Griffith is lusciously accompanied by Kell Kellum’s pedal steel riffs in this heart-tearing number titled after the South’s most iconic blossom. The irony being the happy songs of feathered friends wistfully layering things out as if trying to match the sad machine’s own string-bending tales of woe. It’s a polarizing take on happiness and foolishness, sadness and heartiness like there’s an actual dividing line between them all. “Magnolia” is a foolhardy lament in the most robust of veins, hard to find but even harder to please. This is Will Griffith, “reaching for light in the self-designed darkness, taking a stab at honest suffering in order to achieve true happiness”, preach on, good brother…
Tour Dates:
Nov 7 The Nick Birmingham, AL w/Young Valley
Nov 16 Proud Larry’s Oxford, MS
Nov 23 Egan’s Tuscaloosa, AL
