Brother Dege - Aurora

Brother Dege died last week. The man of many talents has had his time run out, and the world is less fun because of it. I don't know how he passed, but he had tour dates planned because he was releasing another album that came out today. Life isn't fair.

I don't recall exactly how I discovered Brother Dege Legg, but I think it involved a Dax Riggs fan site. Someone posted Santeria, the band Dege was in before going solo, and I was hooked. Even back then, those guitar riffs blew my mind. Etherial grooves on a guitar I could not understand, and lyrics that took me into the unknown sung by a man everyone could understand. "They somehow retooled the basics of southern rock and modified it into a new and inspired form—relatively free of Confederate clichés and beer guzzling drunkenness - concentrating their creative energies on expressing the isolation and loneliness of the modern south." A mix of blues and southern rock made "Mexico" one of the greatest songs I've ever heard. The band went their separate ways, but the video of a man playing something similar in a full public bathroom was next on the watch list. I listened to a scruffy man play a metallic guitar in a room that enhanced the echo. It was pure magic. Despite not caring for either of those genres, a fandom that has lasted fifteen years became an integral part of me. Brother Dege was another constant musical companion during college. I eagerly awaited every announced album. Folksong of the American Longhair was amazing. How to Kill a Horse may have been a first date? Farmers Almanac and Scorched Earth Policy were full of bangers. And now, the resonator writes Aurora...

The title track is how Brother Dege started off his last album. "Aurora" is a pure instrumental that welcomes us to his otherworldly plane where only the good brother lives. A tasty blues riff plays underneath a raising overture. Welcome to the swamps of Louisiana.

"Where the Black Flowers Grow" is a banger. It's catchy, and it's obvious why this was the first single. That opening riff is primo Dege, and that's why I listen to him. Lyrically, it's a bit repetitive, but I'm so enamored by the Dege's voice. There's something about his voice that pierces the veil and reaches out to the inner depths of one's existence to make them hear and listen to what's happening. I have to assume it's that deep Louisiana accent combined with that voodoo curse. Even when he gets gruff with it, and it almost sounds like he is out of tune, it brings you in deeper. As far as I can tell, the song is about being weird and accepting it. He wants to go where black flowers glow. Flowers don't tend to be black unless, according to Wikipedia, "black roses symbolize ideas such as hatred, despair, death or rebirths." Hmm... The song is surprisingly rock compared to previous Dege albums. My mind is probably misremembering, but it doesn't recall Dege having such a backing band on other albums. A drummer, yes, but an entire ensemble?

"Climbing Ivy (Sleep Beside You" has a piano in the background. That's definitely different. There's another instrument that I can't figure out too that sounds like a violin or dulcimer keeping time. The lyrics are a love song, but it's a type I don't really get. I think the person of interest is a popular person with many admirers. But the writer loves them in a different way. But it's a love "that's lost its way." Some words are uttered before and during the breakdown that makes me think something creepy is going on, but maybe that's just because it's hidden. That blues guitar riff is another experience.

"A Man Needs a Mommy" is a song I wouldn't write. The distorted lullaby guitar is rad, but "mommy" kinda throws me off. Maybe it's a Southern thing I don't understand? It's a song that empowers women but only because men need them. The vibes are just off with me, ya know?

"Turn of the Screw" is the third single. It's another full on rock song with an obvious band behind him. I have no clue what the song is about, even in the slightest. Is it a reference to an 1898 horror book? Musically, it's fun and exciting, with a great slide guitar solo thrown in. It's becoming a theme that I don't know what's going on in the tracks, but I am glad I'm here.

"Ouroboros" is an instrumental song, unlike anything Brother Dege has ever done. It starts with a heavy violin that sucks the joy out of life. An ominous, dirty electric guitar joins the procession, but it remains in the back. The last thirty seconds are more usual. It's a bit more upbeat, but it feels like I should be longing for something. That's the vibe, not me disliking it.

"The Devil You Know" is the second single. It's another sad song, even though I find the lyrics hopeful. They're about getting away from a town because he "don't want to be crazy." The first words are "someday," so it's probably a dream. A dream that can't be fulfilled? What's the devil you know here?

With the title of "Loser's Blues," I think this song is about me! If someone told me AC/DC wrote this song, I'd believe it. There's a driving chord progression that's always there throughout. There's even a key change (?) in the pre-chorus. It's an upbeat blues/rock track about the woes of life. Verse one is about a vagabond who wants the blues to end. Verse two is about a successful office worker who hates their fake job. The last section is Dege's guide to a happy existence. Just be a good person. Give the beggars some food, realize the haves and the have-nots are the same, and something I can't make out. A happy track?

"The Longing" is the final song, and it's a lone Brother Dege with his resonator guitar. It's a song about seeing friends leave and saying goodbye in a few different ways. It changes three minutes in into something more rock oriented, where the writer looks forward to "all the things I can't change." A solo breaks out that makes me slightly depressed, and it takes us to the 5:30 mark. Church bells ring out, and the song is over. Like a funeral? The bells subside for a church organ, but that's quickly drowned out by the sound of falling rain for six minutes. A quasi random guitar chord plays and sustains itself from time to time, but even that stops, giving us a minute and a half of steady rain. The last twenty seconds are just silence.

Maybe I'm being over dramatic, but did Brother Dege know he was dying? Was he sick? This entire album is filled with sadness and melancholy that gives off the idea of a farewell. Black flowers, some/one days, the rebirth symbolism of the snake eating itself. Even the album name, Aurora, can be a reference. Some Vikings believed the northern lights to be the bridge that allowed fallen warriors to reach Valhalla. I'm worried that I'm overthinking this and really don't want to get into the private matters of a man I've never met, so I'll just jump to the review.
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Skill) Brother Dege's guitar playing is as good as ever. He introduced me to the delta blues, and I really should listen more. The lyrics are entertaining, but I feel like the choruses get repetitive. He tends to repeat the same line or two. 1/2
Variation) There's a share of blues, rock, and a mix of moods. They tend to be sad moods, but depression comes in many forms. 2/2
Bangers) One at the moment. Will "Turn of the Screw" breakthrough soon? "Devil You Know" will likely be on a lot of people's lists. 1/2
Replayability) Between lyric deciphering, the addictive qualities of a resonator guitar, and a musician's final recordings, you'll be back to this album a lot. 2/2
Extra) Aurora clocks in at forty two minutes across nine songs. And if I'm correct about my overly thought out could-be prophecy, there's an aura of something here. 2/2
Total: 8/10

Brother Dege has been a musician, a cab driver, and a writer throughout his life. I've been wanting to buy Cablog, but I suck. His life was filled with a lot of activities, and everyone who knew him loved him. His music touched all who heard it, and he was unable to write a bad song. There may be one track on his last album that confused me, but this is a great album that's worth an addition to everyone's revolving music rotation. Farewell, brother.