We’re excited to have some time today with acclaimed Bay Area dark pop project Decant; greetings and salutations, gang! Before we dive into the Q&A mosh-pit, could you each say ‘hi’ and introduce yourselves to our ever-inquisitive readers?

Hello, I’m Freddie, from upstate Hudson NY by way of the Mississippi in Ferryville WI. By night, I sing and compose as part of the group Decant. By day, I make drinks and serve people in the Sunset in SF.

Hey, I’m Joey. I’m a geologist and a musician from Fresno, CA. I play keys, guitar, and produce in Decant.

Hello I’m Van, I’m a classically trained musician from Albuquerque, New Mexico. I play guitar and keyboard in Decant.

Hey I’m Theo, I’m from upstate New York. I play drums in Decant.

Congratulations on the amazing new single Offshore which premieres on July 28! Freddie, what was the genesis of this gem of a tune? How did it come into being?

“Offshore” was inspired by the distance that is created between people who were once very close.  The odd time signature is a way of making the familiar a little stranger while telling the story of two different worlds sharing a confined space.

Offshore was self-produced and recorded by the members of Decant. Joey, what are the pros and the cons to self-producing?

My favorite aspect of self-producing music is the feeling of bringing something into existence from nothing and the sense of catharsis I get from it. Part of what we hope to achieve with our music is bringing this catharsis to our listeners. Encapsulating a fleeting emotion in a piece of music preserves feelings I can’t evoke through language. Producing music has always been a way for me to share what I don’t have words for and has provided solace to me through difficult times when nothing else seems to help. 

Sometimes there’s a battle with perfectionism for me while producing music. Striking a balance between being satisfied with a piece of music and knowing it could be better kept me from releasing music for many years. I had been working on some of the Decant songs such as, “Gallatin” and “Take Them” as early as 2016, but it wasn’t until Freddie and Van were involved that the songs were able to take their final form.

Van, for music lovers who are coming upon your music for the very first time, how would you describe it to them?

We play dark melodic pop music, blending electronica, garage, indie, and goth elements. We use a mix of electronic and traditional instruments to weave immersive textures that are meant to transport the listener.

Thelonius, in your opinion what differentiates Offshore from the Distinguished Competition on the 2023 music scene?

The blend of acoustic and electronic textures in Offshore evokes emotions that are raw and introspective. While being an electronic and driving composition, a feeling of intimacy is not lost, something that is often hard to find in today’s pop music scene. Freddie’s vocal performance plays a large role in creating this feeling. Her performance, Joey’s aesthetic decisions when producing her vocals, and Van’s dreamy guitar parts, result in a more internal feeling while maintaining the visage of an external pop melody. Often a single vocal motif is used repeatedly in popular music by utilizing the same sampled melody and chopping and rechopping. Freddie is able to achieve this result, but maintains depth and authenticity by uniquely performing each of these samples.

Freddie, on the heels of the July 28 release of Offshore, can fans look forward to seeing Decant on the touring/performing circuit?

We are currently booking shows in California and are looking forward to touring in the future.

A question for all of you: Who inspires you musically?

TSHA, FKA Twigs, Alvvays, Beach House, Frank Ocean, Jamie XX, James Blake, Nnamdi, Parcels, Burial, Brogan Bentley, Maurice Ravel, Johannes Brahms, Gabriel Fauré, Erik Satie, Autechre, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Radiohead, Tim Hecker, Aphex Twin, Saya Grey, Grouper, Yeule, Arca, Pete Seeger, Sufjian Stevens, Lykke Li, Sophie.

Joey, with the release of the new single, can fans look forward to an EP or LP release from Decant before the end of 2023?

An LP is in the works, but it won’t be released until early 2024. However, we will be releasing two more singles and a short interlude before the end of 2023.

Van, how is Offshore similar to such past Decant music as Take Them? How is it different?

Firstly, “Take Them” is literally our oldest song, whereas “Offshore” is one of our most recent. Those two songs represent the entire span of the development of our composition and production process as a band. Take Them took years to fully flesh out and develop to completion, whereas Offshore was almost fully written in a matter of days. That’s partially because during the four or so years we’ve been composing music as a cohesive group we have refined our process and our tools immensely. It’s hard for me to judge how this difference appears from an audience’s perspective, but to me, the aesthetic concept and intent is more distilled and refined in a song like Offshore as opposed to Take Them. That difference represents growth, but it doesn’t mean that I like Take Them any less.

Thelonius, Decant hails from the Bay Area. How do those roots inform the sound of the band?

Myself and Freddie grew up in upstate New York, and at a young age began trying to evoke the feeling of our surroundings through music. We moved to the bay over a decade ago as part of our former project Yassou. We continue to be inspired by the beauty the Bay Area holds with Decant. Joey who hails up in Northern CA, is a Geologist, and the driving creative force of Decant, is often out in the field, immersed in nature.

Those experiences combined with the beauty, diversity, and eclectic nature of living in the bay, drive the creative decisions and emotions of the band.

We’re highly influenced by the scenery, landscape, and nature of the Bay Area. The hills, the ocean, the city, and of course the people – all of which are dreamy and surreal.

Freddie, at the end of the day what do you hope listeners walk away with after giving many-a spin to Offshore?

The takeaway for me is in the chorus where I repeat the phrase “You are everything you want, you are everything.” I sing it as a reminder to myself and anyone listening that we each contain the universe inside ourselves and that everything we seek in the world we also contain within us.