Deadglow, the progressive rock trio from Oulu in Finland, have released their latest single, The Last Ones, today at MetalTalk. The song is taken from their debut album, Machine Skin, to be released on 29 October 2021.
Recorded in Finland on traditional high-quality analogue, Machine Skin was recorded in a natural setting, avoiding post-recording fixing. The fascinating process of capturing the band’s ideas on tape will create challenges for the future in the live sense. “Some songs we played with two different drumsets because there is so much to play,” Simo says. “If we want to play that live, we need to have two drummers on the stage. It will be the most ambitious thing any of us has ever done.”
Inspired by the Stephen King novel IT, Deadglow refers to the glow you can see in the mouth of Pennywise when he prepares to eat.
“I wanted to create music that I am really into,” guitarist and bassist Simo Lukkari told MetalTalk, “but instead of forming a band, I tried to look at Deadglow from a different viewpoint. I wrote some songs and booked a studio without any rehearsing for recording a single.”
Vocalist Jukka Ruottinen and drummer Juho Mikkonen joined for the first recording session, proving the band’s catalyst. “I had plans to record stuff with different musicians,” Simo says, “but things worked out so well that I had to cancel it.”
“Simo sent me a couple of demos and asked me if I was available to play the drums,” Mikkonen says. “The demos hit me right away, and they reminded me somehow of the music of my youth that I love.”
Musically the band is driven by Simo’s music, with Ruottinen building lyrics and melodies to suit the music. “Some songs sound dark and some lighter,” Ruottinen says, “so the lyrics also go through all kinds of emotions. I don’t like to explain words too much. I hope they say something to everyone.
“I know that I saw the album and single cover before all the lyrics were final, so that kind of also affected my writing. I was also reading a lot of dystopian books and watching tv series when writing.”
The visual inspiration comes from Simo’s love of classic sci-fi and horror. “I think it’s all about the state of this world,” Ruottinen says, “Humans will destroy all nature and eventually nature will have its revenge. Or the machines will get us. The look and the feel are dystopias, the end of everything is sorrowful, but the new beginning will come, and it also means hope.”
Deadglow are:
Jukka Ruottinen (Vocals)
Juho Mikkonen (Drums)
Simo Lukkari (Guitar & Bass)
With:
Matti Törrö: Drums on Escape
Sami Perttunen: Co-Lead guitar on Machine Skin
Tuomas Laurila: Co-Lead guitar on Remember Tomorrow
Teemu Luukinen: Co-Lead guitar on Reckoning Day
Mika Pohjola: Keyboards on Machine Skin, The Last Ones and Your Blood (Parts 1-3)
