Music, Style & Culture

Dog Is Dead: Not At All Dubstep

The band tell us about their new single, and the album they'll start work on in Summer.

Dog Is Dead are catching on fast. Between having met and started playing at school in 2007, to playing Glastonbury last year, one would have to say they've formed a pretty efficient start to their careers. "Glastonbury was incredible, we had a blast," they tell us. Playing to a full tent, the BBC were "kind enough" to put their highlights on television. Anyone who has heard their recent EP cannot deny they earned their place in the spotlight, and such exposure has brought them new opportunities to establish themselves in the public arena.

Following the coverage, a script writer for E4 teen drama Skins approached the band, as the lyrics to arguably their best known track 'Glockenspiel Song' "stood out as a summary for the whole series" that had just been written. Now the band have an appearance in the current season - which kicked off yesterday (27th January) - popping up in the finale, due to be aired later in Spring.

It has certainly been a successful year for the Nottingham band. Asked about what they're looking forward to in the next year, they promise it to be "way bigger," commenting they "can't imagine we'll have much time to chill out, which is great. We're looking forward to touring hard, although we don't plan to stop much so it'll be hard work as well as fun. Recording our debut album will be a huge deal too."

Ah yes, the debut album. Before that though, a new single is on the way. Entitled 'River Jordan', it is described by the band as "darker than the last two singles," and "about a few of the disposable pleasures in life." They're eager not to say too much, but have confirmed it's "a bit different" to anything they've tried before. And it is darker, and a bit edgier. Slower-paced and remarkably less summery than their EP, I ask what can be expected of their first album.

"The album itself will be pretty diverse. We pride ourselves on not sitting with one sound, the album is just a dark as it is bright. It's a bi-polar record." As for the release date, fans are kept guessing, although the band tell us they "plan to record it in the Summer time."

Speculation about the album will certainly be rife, especially on the back of 'River Jordan'. In the past, the band have described themselves as "an original blend of harmonious, indie-pop in the disco, with a cheeky jazz hint," though are now keen to emphasise that being described as "jazzy" is not something they're wild about. "We're just utilising instruments to make new sounds. We're happy writing big chorus pop songs at the moment," they explain, adding: "there's been a running dub-step debate separating the band for a while, but trust me that won't take influence in a million years!"

So there we have it, in a nutshell ladies and gentlemen. What you've heard from them before is pretty upbeat and the new single is a little darker, but still pleasantly familiar. Oh... and the album will be bi-polar and not at all dubstep.

Dog Is Dead release their new single ‘River Jordan’ on 28th February.