Written by Fantasma el Rey
Hank Williams III hits hard and delivers his sixth CD with force and a loud ‘n proud rebel yell. The thirteen tracks on Damn Right Rebel Proud explore a bit more of Hank III’s dark side in a mix of his brand of traditional outlaw country and his flair for metal and punk. At times he’s viciously proud and at others H III expresses remorse for the life he embraced and the torch he willingly bares. With his head held high H III kicks out his jams and looks to please his core audience, which is divided between country stompers, mosh-pit rompers, and us psychos that dig both and get what H III is putting down.
Like other modern outlaws, H III opens the disc with a back fist flung at Nashville and particularly the Grand Ole Opry. “The Grand Ole Opry (Ain’t So Grand)” is a right cross of a song that deals with the fact that The Opry was not only hesitant to take in Waylon, Hank Jr., Johnny Cash, and Johnny Paycheck but that they still haven’t reinstated Hank Sr. after he was booted out back in the 1952. H III swings his country as he always has with a steady drum shuffle, solid stand-up bass, twangy guitars, weeping steel guitar, and racing fiddles with banjo and mandolin thrown in here and there for good measure.
Sticking to this formula are tunes with titles such as “Wild & Free,” “Me And My Friends,” and “Six Pack Of Beer.” Each paints a picture reflective of its title and “Six Pack” has the band setting the woods on fire as they burn through the song at such a speed you’d think they were being chased by the “revenooer man.” “Wild & Free” and “Me And My Friends” are anthems for being messed-up, good friends with bad company, and living “damn right and rebel proud” lifestyles, which they embrace to the fullest.
“I Wish I Knew,” “Candidate For Suicide,” and “Stoned & Alone” are fine examples of H III trying to work out his demons in song. It’s not that he doesn’t love his life; he’s just a man who knows he could do better but chooses not to. It’s a theme that many of us know well and can relate to, like it or not. “I Wish I Knew” is H III’s longing love song to a long-gone sweetheart he was wrongly mean to and has recently realized she was the best of him.
“Candidate” delves into the true inner demons of a family known for epic battles with such forces. Busted up, beaten down, anti social, and cursed, H III ponders the thought of having no more emotions and no longer hurting when he’s “riding in that hearse.” And an important note about “Candidate” is that not once does H III say that he “is” going to take his life or that the listener should; he’s simply asking himself the same questions that many of us have asked ourselves in quite, low moments. “Stoned & Alone” pretty much explains itself as H III tells of drinking alone and recalling his past of loss and misery as he drifts through the haze of being in the title’s stated condition.
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