Out of Santa Cruz, California, the Dirt Preachers Union is what happened when Big Medicine Head stripped down to bare essentials and rebuilt itself with diesel fuel and determination. Bob Gemmell and Johnny McGuire, both BMH veterans, lead this outfit that they describe as “Paisley Americana at its most pure.”
“Certain songs are like messages in bottles, floating until the right hands pull them ashore.“
Their debut single, “Flowers”, was originally written by Paul Kamanski, the late songwriter behind The Beat Farmers’ “Hollywood Hills” and other classics. The band jokes that somewhere up there, Kamanski is waiting with either roses or a shotgun, depending on what he thinks of their version.
Harris’ guitar work and vocals connect this new version directly to the song’s Beat Farmers DNA while letting the Dirt Preachers Union stamp their own identity all over it. It’s the kind of cover that reminds you why people fell in love with the genre in the first place, before everything got overproduced and focus-grouped to death. Dirt Preachers Union clearly loves and respects Kamanski’s work, but they’re not afraid to make it their own. The track moves through alt-country, post-punk, and straight-up rock n’ roll territory.
For a debut single, “Flowers” introduces you to a band worth paying attention to while honoring a songwriter who deserves wider recognition. If this is where the Dirt Preachers Union is starting, the road ahead looks promising.
Muse Chronicle 
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