Florian Döppert (vocals, lyrics, saxophone, and keyboards) comes from the southern region of Germany, near the Swiss and French borders. He doesn’t come alone however. He brings along his first solo project SOUTHDOGROCK, and what he describes as a long-cherished wish to create songs based on his own lyrics and musical ideas, together with a professional producer. He found the perfect match for his project, in Frank Schultz, the owner of PRO TON MUSIC.
“SOUTHDOGROCK is not limited to one style of music, but explores different genres with the musicians involved,” explains Florian Döppert. “The musicians and singers involved waive their fees and support the project with their skills. Without this voluntary support, the quality of the pieces of music would not be possible,” he concludes. The project has already released a series of singles, including “Ride with me”, “The Street”, and “Same girl with emerald eyes”, with many more still in the works.
During February 2021, SOUTHDOGROCK released another set of three new songs, two of them, “Rote Rose” and “Gemeinsam” used German lyrics for the first, while “Old and tired dog” introduced their the first blues rock song.
From the very beginning of the song, all the resources start to roll out over the course of the three-plus minute playing time. The arrangement, features the various components from drum, bass, keys and guitars, to a stirring sweep of horns, all parceled out in a purposeful sequence to generate great momentum.
The sound of SOUTHDOGROCK becomes increasingly prominent as the song unfolds and the intensity and ingenuity of the playing and Florian Döppert’s vocals elevate the recording.
The soulful simplicity and rocking blues grit of the sound and delivery of “Old and tired dog” invites contemplation of what’s preceded this release, and further encourages what will follow from this project, considering the pleasurable processing of a song as musically disciplined and rhythmically exiting as this.
SOUTHDOGROCK plays their blues-rock with a grind and rumble, incorporating funk and groove with a soulful sway. The sound is warm, full and lush. There’s such warmth to the playing, you can almost picture a group of guys standing in the studio — playing together and off of each other, accompanied by Florian’s fiery guitar work and clear, resonating vocals. Not to mention the horn section that adds a whole new level of vibrant resonance to the song.
There is an honesty and authenticity to what SOUTHDOGROCK are doing as a project on “Old and tired dog”. You always want to make sure that you tap into that, because today there is so much hype and pretentiousness in the mainstream, you often forget what simply good music sounds like, when you take away all the corporate branding.
This is a song that grooves and finds its tension in SOUTHDOGROCK’s incredible all-round performance, the rich vocals, the smoldering brass arrangement, the ripping guitars and shimmering keys. Moreover, the recording, mixing, and the production, completely seals the deal.
Ultimately, SOUTHDOGROCK is a non-profit experiment that tries to use the available resources to produce outstanding songs. Fifty percent of each sponsorship, from their fundraising campaign, will be spent to cover the production costs of the next song. The other fifty percent will be donated to the OFFROADKIDS FOUNDATION, which aims to create prospects for street children and young homeless people in Germany: https://offroadkids.de
OFFICIAL LINKS: MUSIC STREAMS – INSTAGRAM – GOFUNDME – YOUTUBE
