Growing up, there were few promising opportunities for young man of Legg’s stripe in Cajun country and things eventually got difficult and strange: chronic bouts of depression, habitual drug use, small town drama, and arrests soon became routine. During one gloomy episode - deflated, broke, and strung out - Legg climbed the Mississippi River Bridge in Baton Rouge, determined to dive into the next life, but after a last minute change of heart, humbly climbed back down and vowed to find a better way to exist. He immediately drove himself to rehab in a stolen Camaro and rededicated himself to his creative pursuits, namely songwriting. He formed the southern tribal rock band, Santeria who had a 10-year run of chaos and bedeviled kookiness (1994-2004). After four albums, they disbanded in an anarchic heap of bad luck, poverty, exhaustion, and voodoo curses they suspected were cast on the band to hasten their demise.
Legg spent the next year living in low-rent motels and trailer parks, writing new songs that tapped into the haunting style of the Delta Blues greats. With an odd ease, the songs poured out, spitting new life into the genre, not by hackneyed imitation, but by infusing original Delta-slide songs with his own experience of growing up in the Deep South—young, white, alienated, and lost. Legg’s Robert Johnson-on-Thorazine-style slide work paired with his droning-rural psychedelia brought the backwoods sounds of Louisiana (hurricanes, cows, cicadas) to life while remaining firmly rooted in the troubled and death-obsessed masters. This batch of songs became the first Brother Dege release, the now critically-acclaimed Folk Songs of the American Longhair (2010) - a record that Quentin Tarantino later referred to as “almost like a greatest hits album” of new Delta blues.
Home-recorded in Alan Lomax-like austerity, the album delivered postmodern tales of desperate southerners, apocalyptic prophecies, midnight angels, hippie drifters, burning barns, and the endless ghosts that haunt the history the Deep South. Quietly self-released with no distribution, no representation, and absolutely no hype, Folk Song of the American Longhair quickly earned 4-star reviews (UNCUT) and gained the attention of numerous tastemakers in film and TV, scoring sync placements on Discovery Channel’s After the Catch, Nat Geo’s Hard Riders, women’s cycling documentary Half the Road, Netflix’s The Afflicted, and most notably hand-picked by Quentin Tarantino for inclusion in the movie and soundtrack to Django Unchained.
Brother Dege quickly expanded his cinematic vision of the South with two follow-up albums: How to Kill a Horse (2013) and Scorched Earth Policy (2015). Teaming with otherworldly slide guitars, country psych, barn burning anthems, the tradition continues with his latest release Farmer’s Almanac (2018), a sprawling, southern concept album that further explores the unique mysteries of small towns.
Brother Dege’s latest album is the critically acclaimed Farmer’s Almanac, an 11-track, southern gothic journey that explores escapism, class structure, and the opiated dark side of America’s small town rural communities. Brother Dege’s fourth album swarms with otherworldly slide guitars, rustic psychedelia, possessed barn burners, and swamp-drenched cinematic songcraft.
Old Angel Midnight
Brother Dege Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lead the way to the dawn.
Tell me why
All the things I done went wrong
For now is the hour
Tomorrow the break of our bond
Yet there is no other way
No other way.
Old Angel Midnight.
Can you come with the rain
And sing to me some more?
Hold me close
And grope me along the floor.
For now is the hour
Tomorrow the break of our bond.
And there is no other way.
No other way.
Old Angel Midnight.
The song "Old Angel Midnight" by Brother Dege seems to be about someone who is reflecting back on their past mistakes and hoping for guidance from a higher power to lead them towards a better future. The singer speaks to "Old Angel Midnight" asking for help to understand why all the things they had done went wrong. The song embodies a sense of desperation and despair as the singer realizes that they've reached a point where they feel like there's no other way out of their problems. The repeated lines of "No other way" seems to emphasize this feeling of hopelessness.
The second half of the song shifts slightly to a sense of pleading with the old angel to comfort them. The lines, "Can you come with the rain/ And sing to me some more? Hold me close/ And grope me along the floor" convey a sense of wanting the dark angel to come and provide solace in their time of need. The song ends on a somber note, as the singer acknowledges that the bond between them and the angel will break tomorrow.
Overall, "Old Angel Midnight" is a powerful song that explores themes of regret, desperation, and hopelessness. It's an emotional and introspective piece that encourages reflection on personal flaws and the need for guidance from a higher power.
Line by Line Meaning
Old Angel Midnight
Addressing the mystical figure who guides him through dark times.
Lead the way to the dawn.
Asking the Old Angel Midnight to lead him out of the darkness and towards a better tomorrow.
Tell me why / All the things I done went wrong
Questioning why he's made so many mistakes in his life.
For now is the hour / Tomorrow the break of our bond / Yet there is no other way / No other way. / No other way.
Acknowledging that there's no avoiding the end of a relationship, despite how painful it may be.
Can you come with the rain / And sing to me some more?
Asking the Old Angel Midnight for comfort and guidance during a difficult time.
Hold me close / And grope me along the floor.
Desiring to be physically held and comforted during his struggle.
For now is the hour / Tomorrow the break of our bond. / And there is no other way. / No other way.
Reiterating the inevitability of a relationship coming to an end and the necessity of moving forward.
Old Angel Midnight.
Finalizing the address of the Old Angel Midnight, symbolizing reliance on the guiding force that's been helping him through his struggles.
Contributed by Max M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@kaltenacht-hr5ej
Old Angel Midnight
Lead the way to the dawn
Tell me why
All the things I done went wrong
For now is the hour
Tomorrow the break of our bond
Yet there is no other way
No other way
No other way
Old Angel Midnight
Can you come with the rain
And sing to me some more?
Hold me close
And grope me along the floor
For now is the hour
Tomorrow the break of our bond
And there is no other way
No other way
Old Angel Midnight
@UltimatePowa
I've uploaded an album from Black Bone Child!
If you enjoyed Brother Dege, you'll most likely enjoy them as well. ;)
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-ZnHSngLyyNOq-HSkahbJoMmbxt0QIUu
@justinbrockhouse8165
Near the end of this song I can see my self 60 years from now sitting on my porch looking at the sunset and just thinking of how life has been and all that I’ve did to get me where I’m at now.
A fantasy maybe or future not sure this song holds a lot in me.
@ToyCollectorBoy
Kenith Lane Cook, rest in peace mountain man. Love from your grandson ❤️❤️❤️. I miss you papa
@HarlekinGer1
I saw him live, his sound is amazing and he's a real character. Signed my dobro
@alanblight9233
Far and away my favourite slide man, a true original and I believe one of the Greats.
@kaltenacht-hr5ej
Old Angel Midnight
Lead the way to the dawn
Tell me why
All the things I done went wrong
For now is the hour
Tomorrow the break of our bond
Yet there is no other way
No other way
No other way
Old Angel Midnight
Can you come with the rain
And sing to me some more?
Hold me close
And grope me along the floor
For now is the hour
Tomorrow the break of our bond
And there is no other way
No other way
Old Angel Midnight
@arlettegm
Dear God...this is amazing!!!!!
@stockzy1
So happy i saw that movie. What up Brother Dege!
@luis14fr
Man, that solo make me feel in the heaven for a little bit time. Thanks! Subscribed
@willilalala248
thanks so much for this music, touch my soul