The next attempt, the sophomore outing, tape number two; the second album is a make or break moment in any band's career. When you successfully capture lighting in a bottle on the first go, fans and critics alike expect you to only replicate your past success, they expect you to up the ante and quickly deliver a second helping of your past feats. Most bands crumple in the face of public approval, instead settling for a second watered down version of their previous work in an attempt to recapture the same lighting in the same bottle. But the truly brave, the truly creative and interesting bands follow another path, endlessly chasing the sonic storm.
Free Energy, the brand new, full-length LP from Los Angeles experimental indie rock band, Dummy, is a perfect example of how to blend together the old to make the new shine brighter. Containing all the rumblings, thrashing and chaos of a more traditional art rock album, Free Energy sets itself apart between the lines, drawing out the full potential of every jazz chord and the untapped memories in every ambient interlude. It's dancey and painstakingly subversive, almost to the point where you forget that it's a rock album at its core, hellbent on redefining the spectrum of the band's sound and shattering their creative limitations.
The record has its jams, it slows, and its highs and lows, but it really finds it footing in songs like "Unshaped Road" and "Psychic Battery," songs that would otherwise be perceived as innocuous ambient vocal tracks. These two tracks, among others, carve out just the right soundscape reminiscent of an old jailbroken Playstation load up screen; raucous and inviting, enticing in a way that makes the listener wonder if they're hearing it correctly the first time, then lassoing you back in for a second and a third listen. It's the gorgeous ambient tracks on Free Energy that allow for the rest of the LP to build a cohesive and unique sound, combining high tempo '80's indie rock with modern bedroom synth pop to conceive and pleasingly convolute Dummy's own chaotic, dissonant and ever so exciting flavor of modern rock 'n' roll.
Ahead of the release of Free Energy, we flagged down Dummy's Emma Maatman and Joe Trainor to discuss the roadblocks to creation, accessibility in modern experimental music, and the inception of their new record. Read on down below!
1. Talk to us a little bit about how Free Energy came together. Was there a specific vision or template for the creation of this record? Any rituals or sacrifices the band held to stylize this album? Specific themes or narratives that helped shape it?
Joe Trainor: For Dummy, writing music is quite difficult, especially after making two EP's, a 7-inch single and an LP. We knew we wanted to make something that reflected all the touring, and the physicality of playing live. We also didn't want to retread old sounds and ideas. That's why there aren’t the retro synth sounds, there is more rhythmic diversity and wider dynamics. We want to always be pushing ourselves with how we approach everything from the music, art and visuals. And not wanting to add to the slop pile that is current day indie rock.
2. Audio Fuzz described Free Energy as a record that "[embraces] movement, presence, and physicality" compared to its predecessor. While recording Free Energy, what did you want listeners to hear, feel and see upon their first listen?
Joe: While we were recording, we didn't consider the listener at all. I think right now especially, artists consider the listener too much. We don't make music for other people, we make it because we are, for better or worse, compelled to make it. We know what we want to feel, hear and see when we listen to make a record. Hopefully, if we did a good job constructing the record, they will feel, hear and see it too. Music is sacred to us, and so much music right now feels profane. It feels like music is more the backdrop to a commodity, be it social or financial. That doesn't drive us, if we can make money off our music that's chill, but it's not why we continue to do it.
3. Jumping off the previous question, you told Guitar.com in 2021 that you "want it to be more like a euphoric experience" for listeners in regard to your approach to making accessible abstract music. Would you say that idea holds true in regards to Free Energy?
Joe: I'd say we pushed this notion further on FE. This record feels so much more alive. The tunnel vision we had for our earlier stuff was broken down, and the music is the better for it. We want people to move their bodies to this record. You can make fun, dancey music while still infusing it with experimental sounds. We aren't interested in being a stuffy self-serious band at all. Everyone takes themselves so seriously, it's really corny.
4. How do you think more bands/artists and listeners can learn to take more risks in their work and listening habits?
Emma Maatman: It can be hard to avoid the algorithm now, for both artists and listeners. It does take some effort and reflection… some active participation to understand your OWN taste, and discover what is truly meaningful to you, not just the mean-average-of-what-is-found-good-and-meaningful-by-listeners-or-musicians-like-you. There is more music now than ever before… might as well try to find something new you’ve never heard before, or something old that never got the appreciation it deserved.
5. "Soonish" is my personal favorite track on the album, could you tell us a little bit more about how it came to be the second track on the album?
Emma: I think it may have something to do with it being one of the first tracks we wrote (and kept) for this album. We worked on it while we played it live. It always felt like a good opener for the set.
6. Moving further down the tracklist, "Opaline Bubbletear" and your most recent single "Blue Dada" make for quite the psychedelic transition piece between sounds and styles on the album. Why and how did you decide to release "Blue Dada" as a solitary single on streaming but include "Opaline Bubbletear" in the music video?
Emma: I think we all see the two songs as very deeply intertwined, but obviously it’s not standard to have a “dance” single with a two-and-a-half minute cosmic saxophone intro before the beat drops. Everything we were discussing and working on for the “Blue Dada” video was already pretty OTT, so we figured hey, why not also include “Opaline Bubbletear?”
7. On that note, what a video! What the hell was going on in y'all's heads? It's awesome!
Emma: It was Alex who had this idea of someone frantically dancing as the world ended… with the visuals getting more chaotic as the song gains momentum. I believe it was Joe who suggested our friend Camirin Farmer be the main dancer in the video. Cam is a super talented comedian and performer and they just seemed like a perfect fit. We love a green screen music video… “Pump up the Jam” was an early point of reference, though in the end the video became a cross between “Groove is in the Heart” and the “Garden of Earthly Delights.” Some of the stranger background visuals are animations by NASA (hope they don’t mind) that I included for educational purposes.
8. Free Energy hits shelves September 6th, followed by a Fall release tour and a Halloween UK tour-- what's next?
Joe: Super hyped for EU/UK tour that's 5 weeks. But yeah, for the next year we will be touring our butts off. I'd love to release our long spoken EP3, that would be more of an ambient project.
Rob Lucchesi
Dummy
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