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<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\nDepartment M is the latest project from Grammatics’ Owen Brinley and Tommy Davidson (Pulled Apart By Horses). ‘Bleak Technique’ is the second track to be lifted from the forthcoming album.<\/p>\n
The latest single from Leeds based duo Department M, \u00a0is an alluring slice of moody synth pop with touches of post-punk. \u00a0Lyrically this is a song about 21st<\/sup> century paranoia and a lack of identity in a post-industrial world. Owen Brinley, lead vocalist, explains; \u201cThe song is an expression of wanting to immunise yourself from the perceived threats of a post-internet world<\/em>\u201d. \u00a0Snow Fox provides a sultry guest vocal, a beautiful contrast to the doom and gloom. We caught up with the boys to find out more.<\/p>\n Give us an insight into your journey \u2013 how did the collaboration between the both of you come about?<\/strong><\/p>\n After our first release, an eponymous mini-album on Fierce Panda, I wanted more of a live feel for our debut LP. Tommy (who also drums in Pulled Apart By Horses and These Monsters) and I pulled the songs through various incarnations at the disused office block we rent in Leeds then took them to our long-term producer and collaborator James Kenosha in Bridlington. The feel of the sessions was very relaxed and fun, creativity always seems to flow easily at JK’s studio, The Lodge. We call going to record there ‘going on holiday’.<\/p>\n How do you think a city like Leeds has shaped you as musicians and creative?<\/strong><\/p>\n Leeds is a great facilitator for bands, it has the venues, cheap spaces to rent and above all great people who are open to collaboration…these are just a few of the reasons the music scene continues to thrive here.<\/p>\n Do you think London has changed the way that you approach making music? Has it inspired you in any particular way or had the opposite effect and absorbed your creativeness?<\/strong><\/p>\n In honesty I’m a dyed in the wool Northerner and have no affinity for the place. It certainly hasn’t had any bearing on creatively.<\/p>\n Tell us more about what you\u2019re working on currently \u2013 how has the summer shaped up for you?<\/strong><\/p>\n I’ve been working on a set of paired down, Elliot Smith style acoustic songs. I’ve always threatened to make a singer-songwriter style record so maybe that’s next on the agenda. I’ll probably take a break from Department M after our first LP, ‘Deep Control’, is released. As we have such a complex live setup and an arsenal of analogue synths to cart around, the idea of jumping on a train with a guitar has its appeal.<\/p>\n Tell us more about ‘Bleak Technique’? How do you approach a track like this and do you ever feel fully happy with the outcome of a track, or are you complete perfectionists?<\/strong><\/p>\n With Dept.M, I usually start with a repetitive loop of some kind and then try and surprise the listener with what occurs around that loop as the song progresses. I suppose what defines DM is that although we’re dealing in synth based electronic music, there’s always a song lurking within the collage of sound. In terms of being satisfied with results, I normally get there…I’ll keep working on something until it feels right. If there’s no anxiety to keep tinkering then I know it’s finished. Usually once the vocals are done we’re pretty much there…they’re normally the last piece of the puzzle.<\/p>\n