Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires - Dereconstructed

In the case of Dereconstructed, LB3’s sophomore effort, though, there is one important difference: the production. No Skynyrd record was ever coated in deep-fried feedback. Producer Tim Kerr, who also worked on their debut, returns, but the trademark simplicity of his work is hidden beneath what sounds like an expensive demo. The guitars, pushed awkwardly to the front of the mix, sound brittle and overpower everything else. While guitar can and should be the focus of a rock record, it shouldn’t drown out everything else. Given Lee Bains’ potential as a vocalist, as well as the aforementioned rhythm section, it’s a damn shame.

Fortunately, the mix doesn’t overshadow the songs themselves. There are some growing pains here, to be sure, but Dereconstructed is a huge step up from their first outing. The hesitant songwriting of There Is A Bomb In Gilead is gone for the most part. In its place is maturity that knows when to cut loose and when to pull back. Shit-hot rockers with scorching guitar leads like “The Company Man,” “We Dare Defend Our Rights” and “Flags!” exist comfortably next to the aching blues-rock of “The Weeds Downtown” and “What’s Good and Gone.” Even the R&B-informed “Mississippi Bottomland” feels like it belongs here. That LB3 can make all of these not only work, but coexist, speaks to the band’s ability to paint broadly without being messy. The pacing of the album is questionable, and silly lines like “we got motherfucking internet” and proclamations of Southern living do get old by the record’s end. But these are nitpicking complaints of an otherwise fine rock record straight from Alabama. Now, can we talk about re-recording this thing?