If you had never seen Gideon Smith and were just trying to get a mental picture of him from listening to one of the few recorded representations that he and his Dixie Damned have graced us with you might imagine a 7' tall giant with long flowing Gregg Allman hair, Elvis' late 70's chops wearing a vintage Cult "Electric" t-shirt, a beat up jeans jacket (presumably stolen from one of the members of Lynard Skynyrd), and shit kicking boots that would look equally right on a Circus of Power album as they would on Captain Sensible. You wouldn't have an accurate picture of Gideon but you would have managed to piece together a fair grouping of his influences. Borrowing from just about every decade and style of music Gideon Smith & The Dixie Damned have managed to create a style that sidesteps classification and carries on the classic traditions of both itinerant blues men and their rock and roll forefathers. Based out of Charlotte, North Carolina, ex-Antiseen roadie Gideon Smith decided to put together a group in 1997 with former members of Animal Bag. Gid and his band were quickly labeled 'the real thing' and gathered high praise in the written press and Internet music world; from their debut EP on Colorado based Doom giants Game Two Records. To work up some rock and roll spirit mojo and keep the ball rolling, Smith then traveled alone to the legendary Sun Studio, the birthplace of rock and roll (Elvis, Jerry Lee, Cash, Perkins) and recorded a session of live acoustic demos with engineer James Lott, using 50 yr old microphones and a chip on his shoulder. Small Stone Records signed Gid & Co. in 1999, and the resulting full length "Southern Gentlemen" was released to excellent reviews and much success. The ensuing decade found Gideon Smith & The Dixie Damned touring extensively east of the Mississippi. Gid & Co. have appeared on no less than six tribute albums, several television programs (including 'The Sopranos', Sons Of Anarchy, Fox Sports, Fusion TV and others) and two indie horror movie soundtracks as well as winning multiple awards in the underground press for 'best hard rock band' Recorded once again at Rustbelt Studios with Eric Hoegemeyer the new full-length album "30Weight" swings easily between all of Gideon's traditional influences, careening from delta blues into creepy doom and meshing classic rock with hippie psychedelica. Gideon called in all the heavy hitters from the Small Stone farm team to pinch-hit while he puts together another band that can stand the rigors of his constant touring schedule, so "30Weight" features the added talents of Phil Durr (Big Chief, Five Horse Johnson, Luder, Giant Brain), Eric Hoegemeyer (Giant Brain), Sue Lott (Slot, Luder) "30Weight" has been a long time in the making but from the first fuzz-infected notes it's easy to see that it was well worth the wait. Blending a life long love of old school rock music, spacey 60's psychedelic biker blues, traditional outlaw country and swampy bayou jams, Gideon and his ever-changing band of musical desperado's have created a timeless classic that could have just as easily been produced in 1968 or 1978 as it was in 2011.