When musician Lee Bains III talks about his roots, one thing becomes apparent: Everything about him – the content of his lyrics, the overdriven sound of his guitar, even the twang of his voice – is steeped in Southern culture.
Bains describes his relationship with the South as complicated. Many of the lyrical themes of his songs deal with the struggle of simultaneously being proud of Southern heritage while also being ashamed of Southern stereotypes.
“I used to allow the South to be defined for me, instead of insisting on defining the South for myself,” he said.
Bains and his band, The Glory Fires, will headline at the Green Bar on Thursday night.
Bains said he is wary of categorizing his music as “Southern rock,” but he conceded that his music is unabashedly Southern. His Southern accent seeps into his vocals, and his songs have heavy blues and gospel influences. Bains said he is actively trying to engage his culture and his place in history.
Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires have been touring over the past year under their latest album, “Dereconstructed.” Bains said the album is intentionally grittier sounding than their previous album, “There Is A Bomb in Gilead.”
“We were recording a single this weekend with the same guy we recorded ‘Dereconstructed’ with, and he was giving me a hard time,” he said. “A lot of the reviews said ‘I wish he spent more time mixing it.’ When actually, we spent an insane amount of time mixing the record to sound exactly like that.”
Michael Caskey, a freshman majoring in civil engineering, said he was introduced to Lee Bains III & the Glory Fires’ music earlier this year. He said he enjoys the band’s politically charged lyrics, as opposed to the usual subject matter of pop music.
“The blend between Southern rock, blues and garage gives ‘Dereconstructed’ a sound that I’m not too familiar with, but definitely enjoy,” Caskey said. “This album is proof that Southern rock can sound good.”
Many of “Dereconstructed’s” lyrics are informed by Bains’ experiences growing up in Birmingham. The album examines ideas of the commodification of Southern identity and what exactly it means to be a Southerner. Bains said he first started exploring these ideas while he was in college studying English.
“I think William Faulkner had the quote that said ‘If you’re going to try to understand the world, first you’re going to have to try to understand a place like Mississippi,’ and that’s how I felt about Birmingham,” Bains said. “It was kind of my portal into knowledge. The more I write around and into the subject, the more I’m fascinated and confused by it.”
However, Bains said he was not always unabashedly Southern in his musical endeavors. He said he remembers when he used to separate himself from his Southern identity, instead finding it more comfortable to create his own identity out of thin air.
“When I was in high school, I found myself getting really into identities,” he said. “I think a lot of that was sort of escapism. It was a way of denying my own experience and parts of myself that were authentic. A lot of me coming to terms with myself was me coming to terms with the South.”
Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires will play at Green Bar at 10:30 p.m. on Thursday with The Golden Monica. The cover is $7.
