There has been a slight shuffling in the ranks since the last album from Dead Favours, and Skinny Hobos frontman Alex Elvis has come in on bass, joining frontman Jared Wrennall, drummer Charlie Smith and guitarist Kyle Wetton. Their new album, Riffing & Yelling, which has been produced by Six60’s Chris Mac, is being released in two parts. The first one ('Side A') is coming out soon, with the second in Q4 of the year, and they are both preceded by the single, Move On.
They are playing a four-date tour, starting in a couple of weeks, and I am currently planning to capture them in Christchurch and if this song is anything to go by, it is going to be simply epic. I am somewhat at a loss of how to describe it, but possibly Kyuss mixed with Foo Fighters, My Chemical Romance, and The Darkness? Maybe? All I know is that the very first time I played this I was in love with it from the first few bars and that feeling only grew. Alex must have thought this an easy gig as he does not even play for the first verse, as it is just Kyuss riffs and drums, with Jared putting his smooth falsetto over the top.
The top melody feels very poppy, but the music is anthemic and pushing, and then the band hit the chorus and it is all hands on deck as they charge through. This is a massive song, meant for the festivals they are often invited to, with a huge crowd joining in and bouncing up and down. This is not a song to be played in a sedate manner, but instead is all about having a load of fun and blasting it out. As the song progresses there is time for Kyle to undertake some noodling, and then Charlie goes into a massive drum roll and we are back off again. In less than four minutes there are multiple sections and layers, and even the simple trick of not having bass on the opening verse is a masterpiece of arrangement.
The album is on my “to do” list, and if everything on there is like this single then I am in for a real treat as this is superb. Blast it out, get the album, then catch these guys on tour, as Dead Favours are back in town.
Combining a mix of huge fuzzy and sometimes quirky riffs, groove-laden drums, beautiful falsetto vocals mixed with arena commanding screams and a level of songwriting that some say has been missing from rock for some time, Dead Favours have been quick to grab the attention of the New Zealand music scene and are going from strength to strength in a very short time.
Since their formation in early 2016, the band have released a string of singles, the most notable to date being Dig (produced by Shihad’s Tom Larkin), a riff-centric banger that quickly grabbed the attention of both audiences and radio programmers alike, spending an impressive 27 weeks in the charts. The success of this debut single lead to a nationwide tour alongside the already popular Skinny Hobos, Decades and Bakers Eddy which saw the band increase momentum and pick up an army of new fans all around the country.
The band quickly followed with the singles High Flying and Better The Weather (produced again by Tom Larkin) which has seen the band go on to be invited to perform at festivals such as Jim Beam Homegrown, Demon Energy Rock The Park and share the stage with international acts Royal Blood and Rise Against which was received with rave reviews;