- An Interview with Dakota Dakota Theim Jammerzine Exclusive 46:51
Dakota Theim has given an exclusive interview with Jammerzine about his new album titled ‘Tangled Heart’, releasing today.
In this interview, we actually have more of a good conversation with Dakota as we get a glimpse of his writing and recording process as well as his new video ‘Feel No Pain’ plus a glimpse into how he plans and promotes his music and where that music is headed in a post pandemic music industry.
With ‘Tangled Heart’, we get a solid album that is written and recorded in Dakota’s true musical style, which is as diverse as it is defined. Beautifully retro while simultaneously endearing in all of the right places, ‘Tangled Heart’ is nine tracks of pure heart with each song giving you a part of its unique personality, but also coming together as that special soundtrack to your next road trip. This album is that companion for your personal time and self, whether it be in the car or at home, you will get that feeling of introversion and spark of creativity and inspiration listening to this. Ingest.
“My new album Tangled Heart is a collection of songs that I wrote and recorded in my parent’s living room over the first year and a half of the pandemic. It started out as an experiment to get better at self-recording and ended up being a full length record that I am super proud of. It’s an album about the process of self-discovery through the trials and tribulations of a long-term love affair that is no longer working out. I hope that those who listen to it find something they can relate to, and I hope that it takes them on a journey. Big shoutout to my best buds Ben Bilotti and Alex Werner for their musical contributions, and a huge thank you to everyone who has supported us in any way. Much love and hope y’all enjoy the tunes!”
Dakota Theim
About Dakota Theim
Piano lessons at a young age can go either way. Some kids hide under the table or refuse to practice while others master the instrument as the foundation of their bag of tricks. Dakota Theim started taking piano lessons at age 7, before later teaching himself guitar after a stretch of enjoying the popular video game Guitar Hero.
With piano and guitar in the bag, Theim went on to teach himself bass and drums. When he wasn’t playing or practicing, he was listening. Artists in the collection of his parents who had stood the test of time held his interest, those with strong, catchy melodies and classic pop sensibilities. These elements would become the crux of Theim’s approach as a songwriter. Leveling up as a multi-instrumentalist came in handy for the recording of the songs on Tangled Heart.
Theim played and recorded everything on early demos for Tangled Heart himself before sharing the recordings with his bandmates, guitarist Ben Bilotti and bassist Alex Werner, and soliciting input. Bilotti and Werner have been playing with Theim since the spring of 2019 and have been friends with him for longer than that. Bilotti and Theim met interning as studio assistants at the recording studio Hallowed Halls in Portland, while Theim met Werner in the halls of Portland State University and later the University of Oregon. Werner and Bilotti’s appreciation for and understanding of Theim’s songwriting means their additions or influences on the songs make sense. Inviting Werner and Bilotti to “do their thing” is a natural evolution of the strong friendships the trio share. Werner’s loping bass and Billotti’s shimmering, jangly guitars shine among Theim’s arrangements, underpinned by Theim’s bouncy melodies and bright, inviting voice.
With an open calendar during the early stages of the Covid-19 shut down, Theim approached his songwriting process initially without the intention of recording an album at all and without a sense of pressure to follow up his debut album Somewhere Under The Sun. This was an opportunity to experiment with songs that people might not even hear. Now they will.
Tangled Heart was recorded in Theim’s home studio, and at the Billotti family home, mixed in Los Angeles by Daniel McNeill and mastered by Timothy Stollenwerk.
LINKS:
https://dakotatheim.com
https://facebook.com/dakotatheimmusic
https://instagram.com/dakotatheim
https://open.spotify.com/artist/3KitrfxcP9ifgEPiKyzier?si=CkF6GTKGQU2LUI4_Z_iBcA
https://soundcloud.com/dakota-theim
https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/dakota-theim/1458383564
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoK-5jzUcJOQHRMg4V5Vx2g
