Written by: David Williams
Score 7.9/10
The Three Muskateers of the Chicago music scene has returned with their latest album Blue Skies. Dehd has been hovering over the middle of the Indie Rock scene like a flying saucer above a crop circle for a couple of years now, waiting to break out to the top tier. The last album Flower of Devotion in 2020 was a step in the right direction to achieving that very goal this was a critically acclaimed piece of work that opened the ears of many new listeners to their music.
If you like the last album, Blue Skies is essentially an extension of their previous work. There is something about a band that knows what they are good at, convincing themselves to stick to what they know best, and that’s ok. Not every artist needs to break the mold by making some genre-bending outer space-sounding tunes that no one has ever heard before, as long as, the music being made by the band is good. Dehd is comfortable with their sound and they have perfected it to a tee.
Photo Courtesy of DEHD.
Dehd plays it democratic when it comes to the vocals on Blue Skies. Jason Balla lead guitarist gets to take lead on a couple of songs, and drummer Eric McGrady takes advantage of the process by singing on the track “Hold”, but its bassist Emily Kempf is when Dehd is at their best on the LP. She is the backbone of the band that helps them stand out amongst the indie crowd when Jason or Eric takes reigns on the vocals the songs aren’t bad but there’s no distinction between them and other groups that have a similar sound.
Kempf has the charisma a front person in any band needs, she also can blend her singing voice for whenever the occasion is needed. For example in “Bad Love,” the way she can stretch out a chorus to make it more fun for the listener to sing along with is a talented skill “I got a heart full of, I got a heart full of/ R-ruh-ruh-demption” she makes the first half of the word redemption sound like Scooby Doo when he sees a ghost in a haunted mansion.
In her free time, she also moonlights as a tattoo artist, even going to give someone some fresh ink on stage the other night. So, if you are lucky enough to win her services do yourself a favor and don’t ask for anything stereotypical like barbed wire around your arm because you’ll be laughed out of the studio.
Photograph: Alexa Viscius
Photograph: Alexa Viscius
“Empty in My Mind” is a perfect song to sing at the top of your lungs while driving down the freeway on a hot summer day. Kempf sings the chorus almost hoping for you to join in with her. The song is about having eyes for an acquaintance close to her “Over kissin’ strangers/ I want to kiss a friend.”
The motif of Dehd is to keep the music simple, having the guitars not do too much, and the drums have a subtle nature to them, but the vocals of Kempf are what the band wants you to focus on. There is no greater example of this than the song “Clear.” Bare minimum drum play along with their signature guitar sound takes a backseat to Emily’s wailing vocals on the hook stretching the word clear for what feels like an eternity.
No surprises come with their music, you know what you are going to get with a Dehd record. You will get a clear and concise LP that many can play front to back with minimal skips. If you want to impress your hipster friends put this album on at a party you will see guys with mustaches covered in ironic tattoos holding their Corona light beers, enthusiastically bobbing their heads in the most discreet of manners, just as the band intended.