1932. After years away, twins Smoke and Stack return to their hometown in the Mississippi Delta. They had time to fight in the trenches of World War I, and then became gangsters in Chicago. The brothers buy the property with outbuildings from a white racist to open a music bar for plantation workers. The highlight of the opening is the preacher's son, who is given a guitar by the twins and plays the blues so well that he attracts the attention of a nearby Irish vampire.