More about: Dead Chic

Every now and then, a song is just exciting. It starts and within the first few seconds it’s reminiscent of the stuff you know you’re into but also triggers something new. This is what happens within the first few seconds on the new song by Dead Chic, ‘Les Fleur Séchées’.

A light electric drum beat kicks in, a quick four count of elevator music before the first lyrics of “grit your teeth and knuckle down” fill your earphones, accompanied by an easy melody on keys that provide the perfect backdrop for a narrative driven tune. The way that lyrics are portrayed in this song are incredibly emotive, every syllable of each word has its own fluctuation, to the point they could be the introductory lines to a musical about haunted houses.

There is a steady build throughout the verse until the chorus arrives, which takes what the track has already cemented and then elevates it. Strumming up on a distorted guitar gives a possessed impression, with sound-effect like hits on strings which add to it. Drums go heavy and cymbals crash sporadically, each one burying you further in the chaos of this tune. Down and down and down until all comes to end and you’re throw straight back into the pleasant calmness of the verse.

There are of course comparatives here with other bands such as The Last Shadow Puppets and Black Keys, but I think to simply say “if you like them you’ll like this” wouldn’t be fair. Dead Chic clearly wear their influences on their sleeve but leave their jackets at the door. It plays a part in production but it doesn’t get in the way of the bands innovation. They take indie rock and add to it, pepping it up, like making a margarita but lining the rim with Cayenne Pepper rather than salt.

The songs come from the new EP ‘The Venus Ballroom’ which is also out now. “With ‘The Venus Ballroom’ we wanted to capture the intensity of the group on stage,” said the duo, “it was an intense four-day live session. “The Venus Ballroom” lays the foundations of our aesthetics; 5 pieces and an instrumental with which we want to put the listener’s imagination to work, take them into the landscapes, powerful and cinematic.”

You can listen to the new EP ‘The Venus Ballroom’ now

Grab your copy of the Gigwise print magazine here.

More about: Dead Chic