Watch our interview with Death By Denim below!
Perth-based four-piece Death by Denim have dropped their new EP, My House is a Club. To celebrate the release, the band have curated an exclusive playlist for MILKY full of tracks that influenced the collection of songs.
“It’s an EP largely about being in limbo, whether its with your personal relationships or life pursuits, and choosing to ignore it with a constant intake of meaningless celebration and socialisation, masking the fact you are afraid to move forward and forever feeding this inaction. We wanted the breadth of the EP to sound “FUN” even though the lyrics are awfully somber and shaky at times. It was after all recorded at a very promising time, the band had their dreams come true with a LAV performance and national touring was firmly back on the agenda. It felt like we could breathe easy again and we wanted the music to reflect the fact we were pretty much dancing on our feet through most of the recording process.” the share of the EP.
To celebrate the release, Death By Denim will be hitting the road on a national tour. Kicking off at Howler in Melbourne on May 5, the run of shows will continue on to Sydney's Waywards, Wollongong's La La La's, Brisbane's The Brightside and Solbar on the Sunshine Coast, before wrapping at The Rechabite in Perth.Tickets are on sale now!
PALLÉ’S SONGS
FEEL GOOD INC - GORILLAZ
When I think of a great up tempo bass riff this is always my go to. This absolute bop was definitely a big inspiration behind the bass and guitar in title track of the EP. We’ve never really had a song where the bass is playing the leading melody. This was a great reference for ways we could add layers and attitude to the song without masking this component.
SCANDAL - QUEEN
Not one of the more known songs of Queen but I remember discovering it in a documentary and frothing the epic sound of the guitar riff. This was heavily in mind for me when laying down the Magic Daisy riff in demos and in studio - combining the guitar riff with a higher synth playing the same line to really lift the sound.
LOSING TOUCH - NOAH DILLON
I might be bias because this was recorded at the same studio (Debaser) with Andy Lawson but this tune by our friend has so many amazing musical moments where it transports you for a second or two into a different world. There’s this whacky part in verse 2 of Draped In Vapour where we break the beat and have all instruments and vocals running the same melody with a choir added in the background. It’s a bit insane, but just for a moment.
SHALALA - MOSES GUNN COLLECTIVE
Its way more cruise and psychy but the falsetto vocal in the chorus of Shalala really inspired the vocal tune and range in Magic Daisy. It was much slower and stripped back in the very first demos on acoustic guitar with that woozy guitar and high-pitched register. The final product is way more layered and in the world of the Bee Gees because I think we just wanted to dance however this song definitely provided that initial inspo especially after Nik had been exploring his high range more and more on the Moonbow record.
BE ABOUT YOU - WINSTON SURFSHIRT
It’s a bit more stripped back and simple but this was another great reference for Draped in Vapour - it’s got that awesome call and answer arrangement between the lead vocal and synth in the chorus and we love a chorus where the instrumental melodies are just as much of a hook as the lead vocal.
NIK’S SONGS
505 - ARCTIC MONKEYS
No secret how much we love Arctic Monkeys and this one is a personal favourite. Such a simple song but the build is so effective and alex turners vocals is some of his best ever.
SACRIFICE - THE WEEKND
The Weeknd is definitely a huge influence in our current work. Dawn FM and specifically this song was a huge inspiration when writing songs like Magic Daisy and was always one we’d play to compare how they sounded next to each other in the studio.
ON MELANCHOLY HILL - GORILLAZ
Gorillaz were another big influence of ours in both the writing and recording process. This song kinda makes me feel incredibly happy and incredibly sad at the same time, which is exactly my type of music. It has a sense of hope and euphoria, but also an undertone of sadness which is just perfect songwriting.
MORE THAN A WOMAN - THE BEE GEES
Who doesn’t like this song? We had a lot of songs on this EP with higher falsetto’s mainly in the chorus’s and Barry Gibb was definitely the main source of inspiration for that.
REDBONE - CHILDISH GAMBINO
Similar to The Bee Gees, this song was a bit of an eye opener in falsetto style singing for me. When I first heard it, I was shocked like the rest of the world that it was Childish Gambino and thought I could try sing somewhat like that in parts!
GEORGE’S SONGS
IN YOUR EYES - BADBADNOTGOOD FEAT. CHARLOTTE DAY WILSON
The vintage style of production and the subtle strings give this tune a reminiscently melancholy tone that was a huge inspiration for all the string and classical instrument passages we recorded using the Mellotron. I am crazy about the drum tone on this song, along with the tone of the mellow yet punchy bass - the layering of these two giving the backbone to this smooth and sultry tropical heartbreak getaway of a song.
OWNER OF A LONELY HEART - YES
This song was a great reference in pulling up a few of Pallé’s guitar tones. It also has similar vocal stylings to The Weeknd; who’s album we were consistently dismantling during the recording of this EP. The general mix of this song is also fantastic - every aspect, instrument, idea and trinket can be clearly heard, and little treats like the synth and orchestra hit at 0:19 pop out and hit you like a slap in the face. It’s awesome.
BEST TO YOU - BLOOD ORANGE
The synth pad in this song transcends me to a celestial plane I had no idea existed or would ever be privy to. The percussion arrangement is so carefully crafted out of drums, percussion and marimba and has this really euphoric, pumping quality to it. Both of these elements I found super inspiring in creating new synth textures and drum machine sequences. I also love Empress Of’s voice on this one as well - it’s soothing and soft whilst ripping your heart apart with the intent and chagrin of the lyrics.
SOUL CONTROL - JESSIE WARE
There is not an aspect of this track I’m not obsessed with. Everything this absolute banger has going on really left a mark on me and how I craft synth and bass passages. The incredible synth melody at the start is then joined by a bass counter melody and the most pumping drums you’ve ever heard; and all of this still somehow leaves space for Jessie to get her intimate and alluring vocals to rest delicately on top. The song has two choruses for goodness sake. Just because it can. And they both slap.
OUTPOST ALPHA - MITCH MURDER
This track is an electronic composition masterclass. I truly appreciate and am in admiration of Mitch Murder’s extensive sonic pallet whilst handling synths, samples and drum machines. The gorgeous blend of subtractive and FM synthesis, along with the meticulous layering of classic drum machine sounds with plucky sample-based sparkles is something that pushed me not only as a keys player, but as a musician to look at each sound like a spice you add to a dish - everything has a unique flavour and character, and when you get the balance just right, it’s a bloody treat.
HAMISH’S SONGS
LISZTOMANIA - PHOENIX
I wanted to capture the energy and euphoric feeling this song makes me feel. I paid close attention to what Thomas Hedlund the enigmatic drummer was doing and tried to emulate for songs like my house and hope we don’t fall in love.
YOU AND I - RICHARD HAWLEY
This song influenced my approach to Cruel the last track on the EP especially the bridge section which has some gritty guitar riffs and cymbal stabs to keep a glimpse of the rock flavour in our sound still alive.
AIRPORT BEERS - CAMERON AVERY
This song inspired in terms of creative songwriting and percussive approach to sections. Layering in the studio is huge for us and I always went back to this song for inspiration.
LANDLINE - BINKI
I heard this song on Fifa 22 which was my favourite song on the games playlist so naturally it has inspired me with how I wanted to feel listening to the songs we were creating. I wanted to listen to the songs and say “yeah this could be on fifa for sure”
TRY - NILUFER YANYA
This song captured the moodiness and songwriting prowess I wanted to tap into for a song like draped in vapour. This song is delicate but edgy at the same time- from the lyrics to the arrangement it’s wonderfully inspiring.
My House is a Club is out now!