After all that Molly Tuttle concert awesomeness over the weekend it was hard to adjust to something new, but the Odyssey takes no prisoners and allows no respite. Of all the things in my life that offer me no respite (yes, there are a few) the CD Odyssey is consistently the most welcome.
Disc 1757 is…. Poetry
Artist: Dehd
Year of Release: 2024
What’s up with the Cover? I have a bit of blue/red colour blindness so seeing this cover at all was a small challenge. I think it is a drawing of a wolf, but if there is anything else going on, I’ve missed it.
How I Came To Know It: I was already a fan of Dehd so when I saw this album in the local record store I decided to just take a chance.
How It Stacks Up: I have three albums by Dehd. I like all of them, with “Poetry” coming in at #2, or right in the middle, just narrowly behind “Flower of Devotion”.
Ratings: 4 stars
Some bands just know how to write a toe tapper. Dehd records consistently know the alchemy involved, dropping delightfully offbeat pop hooks that are catchy and unexpected in equal measure.
Many rock trios have a surprisingly heavy sound (Rush, Budgie, Triumph) but if you are looking for that kind of trio, Dehd is not for you. Dehd take a less is more approach, with sparse and artfully timed arrangements. Lots of space between the instruments makes the intricate syncopation that is employed noticeable, but never muddy.
The effect also creates an almost fifties innocence. As if Buddy Holly liked to get high and go surfing. I know what you’re thinking – wouldn’t that be Dick Dale? In this case, no. Dehd is more of an eighties Goth vibe, reminiscent of the (recently reviewed) Growlers but with a lighter, poppier sound.
The band employs two vocalists, Emily Kampf and Jason Balla, and the effect of having both masculine and feminine options to draw on gives the album a lot more creative range. They are also very good at a call-and-answer approach where the secondary voice on any song adds well placed yips and yells into some of the “dead’ space in the production giving everything a party atmosphere.
Despite all that energy nothing ever feels cut off or rushed on a Dehd song. It is the musical equivalent of a clever forties Film Noir, with each player delivering their snappy bit of dialogue in perfect cadence to keep the energy up.
I also want to give a shout out to Balla’s work on the guitar, which gives the music its eighties surf feel. Heavy echo is employed but because of the light touch on the production it has lots of room to spread into the corners of the song. Balla’s guitar fills every tune with diffuse triumph and earnestness. It is like being in an eighties teen classic like St. Elmo’s Fire or the Breakfast Club, feeling all the feels.
The best track on the record is also the first one you hear (attention album makers – this is always a smart move). “Dog Days” has a choral, sing-a-long power to it, as well as a lean-forward energy that fills you with a good kind of restless.
“Hard to Love” follows hard immediately thereafter. It is a song about how the narrator likes a little drama in their relationships. Or as Dehd characterizes it:
“Won't catch me goin' on about where the good men gone
Give me someone rough and tumble, someone hard to love
Gotta love the good men, but that ain't what I want
Give me someone rough and tumble
Someone hard to love”
It is a song that opts for chemistry and passion over peace of mind.
My biggest issue with the record is the lack of track listing on the back of the digipack. At first I thought it was just my red/blue colour blindness hiding the text, but nope – there’s nothing on the back cover than an unfortunate stain picked up from my wet kitchen counter. Is it so much to list the songs, Dehd!
Otherwise, this is an excellent record that holds up through multiple listening experiences (a workout, in the car, and finally on fancy headphones at home) with equal grace.
Best tracks: Dog Days, Hard to Love, Necklace, Dist B, Don’t Look Down, Knife
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