Dyl MooreIncoming! We premiere the first track of the year from Meath DJs and producers Deciduous today, as their ‘Other World’ EP gets its full release.
Deciduous, are an audio project composed of two like minded individuals from Meath, who have just released their latest EP. The two guys, Paulo & Ryan, have gained support from industry heavyweights, return with a three track masterfully curated EP, culminating in a journey which perfectly depicts their abilities.
The duos ‘Other World’ EP is their first EP of the year and has already garnered support from the likes of Adriatique, Fideles, Kevin De Vries and Oostil to name but a few.
Deciduous began in 2018 after a night under the stars on the banks of the Hill of Tara, a place the two guys call home. They draw inspiration from a range of sources, predominantly influenced by nature and their surroundings. The successful voyage of Deciduous took off shortly after, when they released ‘Daze’ on Parquet Recordings. Since then, the guys’ releases have been picked up by the likes of Awen, Eternity Sounds and Running Clouds, who all boast a hugely impressive roster of artists. With releases kicking off in flying fashion in 2020 and 2021, seeing them release their single ‘Shards’ on Greg Ignatovich’s ‘Vagabond’ label.
If you’re looking to see Deciduous live, the guys are no strangers to the festival and venue circuit in Ireland, having played everywhere from the District 8 stage of Life Fest, to District 8 itself supporting Maceo Plex & Ellen Allien in the now closed Jam Park, not to mention supporting artists like Dense & Pika, Mind Against and Recondite. The duo have built a phenomenal reputation for themselves.
The duo return in 2021 in the form of their ‘Other World’ EP. “The three tracks are teeming with a sense of expectation and provide reverent studies of the human experience that navigate the complexities of life in the universe. The listener is taken on a journey of exploration that finds harmony in chaos and reaffirms a sense of community.” Paulo explains.
Dylan spoke to Paulo & Ryan about the tracks on the EP and about Deciduous, to get a better understanding of the guys, and their plans for the future.
Q. Hey Guys, thanks so much for having a chat with me. I’d love to know what it’s been like seeing the name Deciduous grow over the years from a locally known name to having your name appear in tracklists for Fideles and Mind Against, plus appearing on District 8 lineups?
Ryan: For any aspiring producers, it’s a great feeling to know that your music is appreciated by some of your favourite artists and we’re no different. The journey so far has been an interesting one, filled with highs and not so many lows.
Paul: So for context, the Deciduous concept was originally created to run nights locally in Meath and Dublin. The concept then evolved into an audio project as we had the desire to create our own music. It took some time to create something, which we were really proud of but it came in the form of “Daze”and since then we have been given the opportunity to showcase our sound at the biggest clubs and festivals in Ireland.
Q. Over the years while progressing, what has been your biggest challenge musically and as artists, and how have you overcome this?
Both: Learning to produce with patience.
Paul: I love working hard personally and never have any issues dedicating time to something I truly love. However, I really struggle to be patient and let an idea develop with time.
Ryan: Likewise, I love trying new things and getting ideas going in Ableton but what I sometimes find challenging is getting these ideas finished and as Paul mentioned giving the project the space to breathe and the idea to really come to life. It’s something we still struggle with.
Q. Can you talk me through the tracks in your latest EP? What was your inspiration, and how much has lockdown influenced this EP?
Ryan: Sure the tracks on the EP are “Other World”, “Midnight Hustle” and “Tara”. ‘Other World” is full of mystery and is built around a dramatic breakdown. “Midnight Hustle” is upbeat and full of groove, it’s mysterious and was created to be deeply compelling for the listener, while “Tara” is something that we feel really explores the deeper realms of melodic techno.
Paul: The EP was finished in the early stages of the first lockdown and the title track was actually written much earlier as it was played by Fideles early 2020 at Crobar in Argentina. So we always had the theme of an EP in our head with the “Other World” concept, as we felt would be moving into a new world post pandemic. We needed to get tracks that would accompany the first and we spent alot of time trying to get the right sounds that would bring balance to the entire EP and we feel that “Midnight Hustle” and “Tara” really have added that balance. So we’re extremely happy.
Q. With your main genre of music being predominantly popular in other countries, how do you manage your expectations with your releases in Ireland? Do you see a rise in popularity of more melodic music in Ireland?
Ryan: We understand that our style of music is predominantly popular in areas of Asia, South America and Central Europe but that never really bothers us. We know that if our music is good enough, it will reach the right people and that’s all we can take care of. We love the process of making music and we love this genre. It’s where we feel most at home as it allows us to really express ourselves. If people in Ireland want to listen to our music great, but if they don’t enjoy that style, it’s totally fine because music is subjective and everyone has the right to listen to what they enjoy.
Paul: I think it’s definitely more popular and I feel that this is the case on a global level not just in Ireland. Unfortunately, I think the pandemic has had a major impact on the growth of this genre in Ireland from a club/festival perspective but District 8, Hidden Agenda and the Melodic guys have always been great ambassadors for this style of music. We have no doubt though that post pandemic the rise of this style will continue not just in Ireland but at a global level too.
Q. What are Deciduous’ plans for the rest of 2021 and for the next couple of years? Are there any long term & short term goals you have set out as artists?
Paul: In January, we said that 2021 would be dedicated to improving our productions, given there was no sight of the pandemic coming to an end. We have two other EPs signed besides this one so three in total for 2021. Our second EP of the year is out this summer and we have another scheduled for October time on a very special label, which we were delighted about. We have already begun to schedule releases for 2022.
Ryan: Yeah, it’s an interesting question. As Paul said, the short term goal is to focus on our productions and continue to grow our network with other artists in the industry. Long term goal remains the same and this is to get better every day, create music that we love and hope that other artists that we admire will love our productions too.
Both: As we spoke about earlier, producing an initial piece of music is a small piece of the overall puzzle. Being patient, staying humble and enjoying the creative process are all equally as important to that initial idea.
You can check out the track ‘Tara’ which we premiere via our SoundCloud page, plus support the full release and pick up a copy from Beatport here.