Channelling hazy adolescent disconnection into a washy synthesis of the synth soaked Beach House, jangly slackers DIIV and otherworldly shoegazers Slowdive, bdrmm combine a flair for weaving together dreamy sonic textures and introverted, personal small-town sketches. They’ve found a kindred spirit in cult shoegaze label Sonic Cathedral (Spectres, Lorelle Meets The Obsolete, Echo Ladies), who are releasing gently anthemic new single Question Mark in both digital & 7” form as part of their Singles Club series.
Vocalist Ryan Smith shows a different side to his versatile song-writing and delivery with this latest release, slowing the pace down to a lackadaisical stroll and introducing acoustic elements to go with bdrmm’s trademark woozy sound. It fits easily into the cannon of shoegaze slow-burners stemming from the genre’s early 90s inception, through various spikes in visibility.
Once again referencing anxious introspection, Smith details the inspiration behind the song as: “being told you’ve done something wrong and believing you’ve done something wrong are completely different things. Question mark came from that realisation.”
Initially a solo bedroom project of Ryan’s, releasing phone recordings into the online ether to warm reception, bdrmm became a fully formed five-piece one New Year’s Eve, as he resolved to create a tangible vessel to carry his tunes.
From here the Hull-based quintet initially cut their teeth across Northern venues, before releasing a handful of fully-leaded tracks. These releases caught the attention of numerous tastemakers in MTV, So Young, The 405, Clash Magazine, DORK, Amazing Radio, Radio 1 and BBC 6Music’s Steve Lamacq & Jon Hillcock.
Live invitations too became bigger and bolder, supports with Trudy & The Romance, Her’s, Gengahr and Horsey, as well as capacity sets at Tramlines and Gold Sounds festivals and several UK tours have established the quintet as stalwarts on the indie scene.
Producer Alex Greaves (Working Men’s Club, The Orielles, Heavy Lungs) is a key element in bringing their ‘gross dreamy noise’ to life.
Joining lead singer and guitarist Ryan Smith in the line-up is brother Jordan Smith (Bass), Joe Vickers (Guitar), Daniel Hull (Synth & Backing Vocals) and Luke Irvin (Drums).