Dante have recently released their first new material in four years – Rose, a new single from the forthcoming sophomore LP, I Wear your Weight with Mine.
The track was produced by Andy Monaghan of Frightened Rabbit, and mastered by Howie Weinberg (Nirvana’s Nevermind). The track sees the Scottish indie band burst back on the scene with a dark, high-energy track, that has echoes of The National and Interpol, whilst further showcasing the band’s talent for songwriting and depth of lyrical content.
The release follows a very successful first LP, Wake, which was hailed by the likes of The Skinny and Art Rocker, and also featured in The Herald’s Top 50 albums that year. The album launched the band on a series of UK headline dates, play a host of major music festivals and also take in their first North American shows in New York and Philadelphia.
Recorded in Slate Room Studios in Pencaitland, Scotland, Rose is evidence of a band that really put in the hours on songwriting
With the release of their second album on the horizon, Dante are ones to watch for 2018. Check out the track below!
We managed to catch up with the band as they talked about the latest release and more!
So what’s it like to be releasing your first track in 4 years?
It feels incredible! This is the longest period of time we’ve ever spent working on a record and I think that shows in what we have produced, but I don’t think we’ll ever leave it quite so long again.
So why did it take so long to release another track?
Ambitiousness, I think. The first E.P., Monochrome, was recorded almost entirely in a flat in Edinburgh, with no expectations whatsoever. For the first album, Wake, we recorded some of the drums in a studio but most of it was, again, tracked in a flat.
With IWYWW, we really started to take it more seriously and spent months working and re-working arrangements, I spent a lot more time editing lyrics, we worked with a producer (Frightened Rabbit’s Andy Monaghan) recording the entire album in Slate Room Studio with Garry Boyle, had it mastered by Howie-the absolute legend-Weinberg and worked with Tracy Maurice (Arcade Fire) on the artwork. Everything was a huge leap up, and you can’t rush that kind of change.
Tell us something about ‘Rose’ nobody knows about?
Rose was the first track we finished on the new album – it’s actually been finished for over a year, but we wanted to wait until we had the rest of the record completed before we starting releasing. Possibly because of the title, I have a lot of affection for that song.
How pumped are you for your release of ‘I Wear Your Weight In Mine’?
Pumped means something very different in Scotland, I think… We’re all buzzing but trying not to get too excited as March is quite a long way away. The most exciting thing at the moment is that the test pressings should turn up next week – it’ll be a great moment hearing the record on vinyl for the first time.
If you could work with any band on a new song, who would it be and why?
I don’t know how good I’d be at collaborative song-writing. I like having complete control over around 90% of the top line melodies and 100% of the lyrics. Personally I’d rather be a fly on the wall watching other people create – I love the new National album and would love to see them make a record. The Bad Seeds, too. In terms of Scottish bands, I love Idlewild and Frightened Rabbit and have worked with Rod from Idlewild on three or four albums, and Andy from Frightened Rabbit on the new Dante album, so I suppose I’m very fortunate in that respect.
How excited are you to be working with Howie Weinberg?
Unbelievably so. He’s mastered some incredible albums! Nick Cave, The Clash, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nirvana… We’re so chuffed he agreed to work with us. Lovely guy, too…We sent a pretty decent malt whisky out to him in LA to say thanks, and I had this image of it being a sort of special occasion dram for him, but his studio manager sent us a picture of Howie just necking it straight out the bottle. At least he never added coke or lemonade but, it’s not Jack Daniels, you know? Scots can be quite uptight about whisky, though. (laughs)
Are you looking forward to your next three gigs in the coming months?
I am – we haven’t booked a load of shows as we’re trying out some of these new songs live. Many of them were studio beasts (some with 40 plus layers of sound) so taking those out live is a challenge. Great fun, but definitely a challenge! It’s good fun trying to work out how six people can play a song that was recorded with 40 instruments…
If you could play at any venue in the world, where would it be and why?
That’s a hard one. I’ve played some brilliant venues over the years… I would love Edinburgh City Council to shut Wetherspoon’s on Lothian Road and have it re-opened as The Playhouse so we could play there again. My favourite venues are always 1200-2000 capacity, any bigger and I don’t really enjoy it as an audience member so I can’t say that Stadiums like Wembley or anything really appeal as a musician for the same reason. I’m sure Live Nation are gutted we’re turning our noses up (laughs). Playing somewhere like the Usher Hall or The Ritz in Manchester one day would be great!
What was the first gig you all attended?
I can’t speak for everyone but I grew up with my Mum being part of a team running a folk festival up in Shetland, so I have absolutely no recollection of my first gig. The first pop music show I remember as really having an impact on me was Pulp, when I was about ten. Jarvis Cocker was/is an incredible front man and songwriter.
In support of the release of Rose Dante are playing a series of Scottish dates, with more soon to be announced:
24th November – Inverness, Hootananny
25th November – Elgin, Drouthy Cobbler
2nd December – Dundee, Benjamin Barker Barbers