The Cold Stares is often endearingly referred to as a Southern band in the press and by fans, despite being a modern blues-rock power trio based out of Evansville, Indiana. Yet, there is an elusive southern quality to the three-piece band’s music and storytelling songwriting.

Maybe it’s because guitarist-singer Chris Tapp and drummer Brian Mullins are from Western Kentucky. Though the guys have never shied away from their heritage, on their aptly-titled seventh album, The Southern, out September 6th on Mascot Records, The Cold Stares delve deep into their lineage for the first time on record.

“When it came time to record this album, I thought about everybody giving us this Southern rock tag, and decided to intentionally write songs that explore that,” says singer-guitarist Chris Tapp. “In doing so, I realized that being Southern, for me, is more than an accent, and a setlist of songs. It’s about family and tradition.”

Initially formed in 2012, The Cold Stares began its career as a duo, but expanded its sonic firepower with the addition of bassist Bryce Klueh in 2022. The Cold Stares has been praised by Classic Rock Magazine, No Depression, and American Songwriter, among other outlets; reached #1 on Amazon Music’s Blues Rock album chart; earned prime sync license placements in commercials, on major network television, and on sports games. Their song, “Mojo Hand,” is the trailer song for Cyberpunk 2077, and has amassed over 10 million streams on YouTube. The band has shared stages with Larkin Poe, Rival Sons, Reignwolf, Spoon, Grand Funk Railroad, and Thievery Corp.

Though the trio has below the Mason-Dixon Line origins, the group mines a woolier sound than expected. Fuzzed-out guitars, Zep-style riffs, and fleet-fingered Cream-style improvisations abound, as do nods to Delta blues.

“Our version of the South is different. When Brian and I were young would sit in with these old guys at the local lodge, at the time they were still playing the old hits by Bad Company, Robin Trower, and AC/DC mixed in with country and southern rock,” Tapp says. “When I heard Free’s ‘All Right Now’ I thought they were from Georgia!”

Tapp’s cinematic songwriting is informed by the stories his grandfather told him; some of which were as wild as the Western movies he loved to share with Tapp when he was a little boy. Crooked cops who had justice served to them by outlaw heroes. A local legend named “Hoppy” who shined shoes while tapping out intricate rhythms.

It is only appropriate The Cold Stares have a song on The Southern called “Coming Home.” It’s a plaintive bluesy song played on dobro. Here, Tapp sings: My Father said son don’t forget to pray/Cause you know there will come a day/When this old world turns against you/You better have a plan to make your way. “Blow Wind Blow” wafts an ominous classic rock feel with lyrics inspired by Dust Bowl-era Oklahoma. “That song is about how hard times can push somebody back into your arms so that you can help them,” Tapp reveals.

“Mortality Blues” is an eerie modern Delta blues played on Tapp’s resonator guitar. It’s rife with haunting Southern imagery and thematics, including a thread about mythologized blues guitarist Robert Johnson. Tapp is a cancer survivor, and it’s hard not to read into some of the lyrics on “Mortality Blues” and not think of his brave journey. One powerful passage reads: I can’t see how some folks set their mind on dying/When I’m doing my best, just to stay alive/And I can’t see how some folks set their mind set on dying/When I’m doing my best just to stay alive.

The Cold Stares kick on the fuzz pedal on “Looking for a Fight” which sounds like stoner-rock band Clutch melded with Peter Green-era Fleetwood Mac. The tune explores our political polarization with Southern rock sass.

The Southern is a special entry in the band’s artistic continuum. It has given the band a chance to dictate their origin story narrative, and share their beloved Southern roots. “We are so proud to tip a hat to Kentucky on this album, and embrace being ambassadors of the South,” Tapp says.