The thing that humanity clings to is hope. In the darkness, light will prevail. In uncertain times, prosperity will ultimately endure: without it, there is simply nothing. On ‘Blue Garden’, Delta Sleep’s 4th studio album, out 11th October on Sofa Boy Records & Wax Bodega (US), the band find themselves digging beneath the overwhelming darkness of the world to find just a glimmer of light — tying in similar themes across their expansive back catalogue to become what is perhaps their heaviest record to date.
‘Blue Garden’ was recorded at the tail end of 2023 at Daft Studios in Belgium with Mark Roberts (Black Peaks, Toska, The Physics House Band) after a year of huge tours across America, Asia and Australia. Where previous albums came together quickly, with all four members entering the studio armed with songs demoed, tracked and recorded live, this time the band started with a completely blank page.
They opted to approach new material collectively within the space of two and a half weeks, jumping at the opportunity to play with new instrumentation at their fingertips to introduce electronic samples and synths. Given the time to really hyper focus on the production resulted in the scope to draw inspiration from the realm of fantasy and the real world that has permeated its way into the band's sound both sonically and visually.
But it’s ‘Blue Garden’s’ lyrical themes which truly razes it into darkness. Underscored by the horrors unfolding in Palestine, it serves as a form of catharsis to a pure sense of helplessness. “So slowly, I can focus on my needs, to feel good in my body / Because in the end it’s all we got / As we watch the world burn, can’t you see that we’re burning” sings Devin Yüceil on ‘Slow Burn’, posing the question of how you come to terms about dealing with traumatic moments outside of your own personal sphere that you feel powerless and despair.
“It feels like there’s a grey cloud over everything that’s always in the back of your mind. There’s this thing happening that’s not right and it’s clouding any sense of joy or happiness and yet we still have to carry on with our normal lives,” says Yüceil . “It’s about not knowing what to do and not knowing how to talk about it.”
Throughout, Delta Sleep weave their way through moments of dark and light, interlaced with a sweeping ambience and complex tempos that are inspired by punk, indie and electronic influences yet reminiscent of the math-rock home they belong to. In true Delta Sleep fashion it’s structures and textures are moulded to their sound — on ‘Figure In The Dark’ it’s the crashing drums juxtaposed with warm harmonies that make it an emotionally purging listen, while the R&B infused rhythms in ‘The Distance’ helps to push this record past the boundaries of anything they have done before. On ‘Sunchaser’ the mood is brought to a heightened crescendo as gorgeous guitar melodies garner a sense of melancholic longing before making way for a chorus that dazzles to life like a beacon of hope.
Paired with the stunning album artwork by Daniele Castellano, who used ideas of shadow in 80s fantasy films and art like The Neverending Story and Peter Pan as a catalyst to capture how world events are casting a shadow of depression, terror and helplessness over us all; and the companion video to album opener ‘Dawn’, which is a beautiful video highlighting the plight of the Palestinian people while showcasing their history and humanity, puts ‘Blue Garden’ into real life perspective.
