You don’t have to come from across the great, big pond to have a bit of British edge to your band. Dear Boy may hail from Los Angeles, but their alternative sound carries with it distinct notes of post-Britpop stylings. There’s the unruffled lilt of lead singer Ben Grey’s vocals, the floating yet electric lift of the guitars, and the riled temperament of Keith Cooper’s drumming. All of it harkens back to a country none of the members was born in, but one whose musical phrasing they make their own.
It’s all audible on the boys’ latest single, “Alluria”. Taken from their forthcoming sophomore EP, Parts of a Flower, the song has a mournful fall to it, but it’s cushioned with the buoyancy of what is most certainly affection. At least, it was at one point. “Alluria/ Give me a reason to stay,” Grey begs on the chorus. “Just tell me something to change my mind/ And I promise to get carried away.”
“While we were recording this song, I can’t remember who it was, but somebody in the control room said that it sounded like if The Cure had written ‘American Girl’,” Grey said about coming up with “Alluria”. “After that, we all kinda quietly decided that that was what we were going for the whole time. I wanted to classify a really specific feeling. There’s a special brand of displacement that only love does to you and it’s not always the healthiest thing. The word/name Alluria was just haunting me for weeks and I didn’t know what it meant until we started writing it.”
Take a listen to the song below.
Produced by Doug Boehem (Girls), Parts of a Flower is due out August 5th via Easy Hell. Pre-orders are going on here. Dear Boy is out on tour supporting the release throughout California, and you can find their schedule below.
Dear Boy 2016 Tour Dates:
07/16 – Oceanside, CA @ Rubio’s Coast Fest
07/23 – San Pedro, CA @ Lobster Fest
08/03 – West Hollywood, CA @ The Roxy (EP Release show)
09/10 Santa Monica, CA @ Showtime Presents Eat|See|Hear
