Utopia Defeated [Audio CD] D.D Dumbo

D.D Dumbo?s long-awaited debut LP Utopia Defeated is set for worldwide release on 14 October 2016 via 4AD. The album is a collision of blues licks, echoes of world music, strident ?80?s pop, the kinetic energy of dance music, and splashes of outsider art akin to Captain Beefheart, one of D.D Dumbo?s touchstones. D.D Dumbo?s fantastical debut album conjures a vivid, wide-eyed musical landscape teeming with nervous energy and exotic evocations of the world at large. Backed by skittering sounds, Utopia Defeated hinges on Oliver Hugh Perry expressive voice, and the dissonance of an artist compelled to question his position in the natural world. Written and performed almost entirely by Perry, the album was recorded at 4AD?s London Studios, with recording, engineering and production by Perry and 4AD?s resident.engineer Fabian Prynn. The 10 track album hurdles effortlessly over the expectations set by his intriguing debut EP, Tropical Oceans. Lead single ?Satan? was named by many as one of the best tracks of the year so far, receiving major support from the BBC Radio 1?s Annie Mac (?absolute gold, I love it?), Huw Stephens, 6 Music (where it was A-listed), Australia?s triple j (#1 most played), Beats Music and KCRW. It peaked at #1 on the Spotify?s Most Viral Chart down under and The Line of Best Fit said it was ?a wholly contagious number? his best work to date.? Uncut magazine has already heralded Utopia Defeated ?a looping, globally attuned 2016 update of Jeff Buckley?s Grace.? The visuals for ?Satan? were shot mainly in and around D.D Dumbo?s hometown of Castlemaine, Australia, as well as on the salt plains of northern Victoria and a derelict swimming pool in a tiny town near the Grampians ranges. Director Jim Elson says, ?we were looking for locations that were iconically Australian but that also had a strong otherworldly quality. I think it?s easy to take these environments for granted when you grow up there, so it was an exciting process to ?discover? them again in a different way. Second track Walrus coincided with the album announcement and is already receiving play at BBC Radio 1 with a video set for release in early September. You can listen to the track at 4ad.com or at any number of digital paltforms including Spotify, Apple Music or Soundcloud. D.D Dumbo?s output stretches back to 2013 when he released his EP, Tropical Oceans. Led by the spooky strut of the title-track, the lo-fi four song set of blues-laced, deconstructed pop, announced Perry as an exciting newcomer fluent in a language all his own. ?Thrillingly fresh.? - Q ?A new kind of blues.? - The Guardian ?An inspired take on pop.? - DIY ?A one-man band of clattering punk lo-fi, blues melodies and dust-soaked rhythms.? - i-D