DEAD ORCHARDS: TRACKS THAT SHAPED OUR SOUND

Dead Orchards started out as an acoustic outfit in the late 2010s and have since played a number of live shows including some of London's most legendary venues such as The Water Rats, 229 London and Hope & Anchor Islington. Dead Orchards have written, recorded and produced every release themselves.

An international move and the pandemic led the pair to a new way of writing - less jamming, more composing. Uneasy at first, it led them into new musical territory, with 2023's synth-powered “I Sometimes Wonder Where You Are Now”, showcasing a more energised sound, opening up the band to new opportunities and a wider audience. Just a few months later, the band released their minimalist electronic EP “Try”.

Flash forward to 2024 and Dead Orchards have just dropped their most exciting music to date with the album “No Longer Will We Dream”, drawing on a diverse range of influences and instruments, consolidating their styles so far and paving another new path for themselves. With the album and two singles “Where Dreams Go To Die” and “Over You” already on major streaming platforms, the band are gaining momentum through radio play, online streams and an expanding fanbase. 

Ruby Haunt - Weathervane

This band has been blowing us away tor the last couple of years and they keep churning out amazing records year after year. The way their sound keeps evolving and how they juggle synths and acoustic guitars is first class. Our 2023 E.P. “Try” owed a lot to this band and that influence has carried into our new album too. With this track in particular, you can imagine the band playing it in the house on the album cover. We love how the track builds, from a choppy acoustic guitar that is soon met by whispering vocals and smooth synth, but it’s that piano in the chorus really lifts it beyond. Our tracks “Where Are You Now?” and “Hometown Overstay” are our most Ruby Haunt-inspired tracks on this album.

The Wake - Send Them Away

The Wake’s 1985 album “Here Comes Everybody” has had a profound influence on our latest record. We wanted to utilise that eerie, foggy synth chord vibe on this album, with our songs “Redefined” and “Parallel Paths” showcasing that most clearly. “Send Them Away” builds up so neatly through a smooth bassline and fuzzy rising synth, with a tidy electric guitar cutting through it all so well, and it’s brilliant how much the vocal range chops and changes throughout the track. It's amazing how sparingly the instruments are actually used, but to great effect. It’s all about the timing.

The Cure - All Cats Are Grey

We’ve long admired just how much The Cure experimented with their sound in the 80s, drifting between goth gloom and more upbeat pop. It is that type of free-spirited approach, pioneered by bands like The Cure as well as others, that has given us the confidence to play around with our sound as we please. We’ve picked “All Cats Are Grey” here as it captures the spirit of some of their darker tracks from that era. Our favourite elements are the echoing reverb on the drums, the understated synths and punchy piano taps towards the end. The Cure's influence on our new album is significant and comes through on tracks such as “The Last Call”, “Redefined” and “Parallel Paths”.

R.E.M. - Find The River 

We are both longstanding fans of their back catalogue, having grown up on a lot of their mid-career material then digging deeper over the years. Whilst writing this album, we were enamoured with some of their early 90s material, this track “Find The River” and “Country Feedback” in particular. For us, it’s the way they effortlessly fuse acoustic guitars, electric guitars, keys and of course, amazing vocal melodies. The final quarter of “Find The River” sends shivers down our spine every time, with that beautiful Mike Mills backing vocal over Stipe’s lead, coupled with some last chorus piano high notes, it’s just genius. Our track, “End (The Distraction)” is our closest homage to R.E.M. 

Smog - Red Apples

Smog has been a big influence of ours for many years, but originally we were most fond of the lo-fi acoustic guitar tracks. More recently, we’ve grown to admire more of his piano-led tunes, with “Red Apples” being a prime example. This track is beautiful with it’s solid repetition and earnest melody. This is how we wanted the end of our album to sound like, with that repetitive mellow keys sound. “Cold Night Memories” sees out our album with how Dead Orchards began several years ago – one instrument and two voices.