Married LA Rockers Dead Posey Talk ‘Malfunction’ EP, Inspirations and Life in LA

Married LA rockers Dead Posey recently dropped their electric new EP, Malfunction through Sumerian Records. With a bit of time on their hands, we spoke to the duo about their influences, the LA rock scene and much more.

Hi, thanks for your time, I really appreciate it. How is life treating you at the moment ?

Dead Posey: “We are making the best out of the cards the world has been dealt. We’ve been reading, watching movies, taking drives, walks & working on the next seeds of ideas to start our full length album.”

Dead Posey might be something of a new name to our readers, could you tell us a little bit about the people behind Dead Posey ?

“We’re a wedded duo from Los Angeles. Danyell is the lead singer/producer & Tony is the Guitarist/multi-instrumentalist/Producer. We make rock n roll music and enjoy anything subversive and twisted.”

The name I believe is inspired by the nursery rhyme “Ring Around The Rosey”, was it a direct inspiration from the rhyme and if so, what was it about that particular nursery rhyme that resonated with you ?

“It’s about the Great Plague. Holding a pocket full of posies was what people did to ward off the disease… Or so they thought… The name was inspired by the nursery rhyme, but a “posey” is also someone that is a poser or superficially trendy which we’re anti.”

Watching your videos the visual side of the band seems to be just as important. What sort of things inspire you visually ?

“Yes visuals are VERY important to us! David Lynch films, Edgar Allan Poe poems and imagery & surrealism photography & art such as Salvador Dali are all major visual inspirations. Often when first working on a new song we are already discussing visual elements that go with it. Sight and sound go hand in hand for us.”

In terms of the writing process for the two of you, how does that work and how is it working now you’re in lockdown ?

“We’ll both bring in our compiled ideas: guitar riffs and beats that Tony has stashed away and lyric and sonic ideas that I’ve concocted. It’s sort of like a “show & tell” in the studio. From then on we’re both in the trenches; for each song it’s like a tug-of-war of both our minds, constantly challenging each other to dig deeper to get to the real essence of what we want to say. We haven’t killed each other yet, so I think it’s working out OK, lockdown or not.”

And the new EP, “Malfunction”, is due out this week, what are your plans once you can promote it again ?

“We’re itching to get back on the road but we know it will be some time until that happens, so we’re making the best out of what we have here to promote it. Our video for Parasite is premiering on Spin.com Monday June 22, and we’re doing a livestream on Tuesday June 23 on Spin Magazine’s Twitch Channel.”

The sound has a modern twist on the classic rock style, if we had a look down your Spotify favourites what would we find in there ?

“Heres the laundry list: The Kills, Depeche Mode, The Velvet Underground, NIN, Johnny Cash, Marilyn Manson, Shakey Graves, Pink Floyd, The Cure, Cigarettes After Sex, Mazzy Star, The Rolling Stones, The Smiths, Joy Division, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Wolfmother, Queens of the Stone Age, The Doors, Garbage, Nirvana, The Black Keys & David Lynch albums.”

If you had to pick one person you think epitomised modern rock n’ roll who would you pick and why them ?

“BRKN LOVE. We toured with them late 2019 & every night they brought a classic rock n roll energy & vibe you hope to get when you go see a rock band perform live.”

What about Los Angeles, what’s the music scene like there (pre-lockdown) ?

“There are a lot of notable venues out here but It’s a hit or miss to get booked or see great shows at them. There used to be much more of a scene here and it’s taken all sorts of different shapes, from hair-metal in the 80’s to a strong indie rock scene in the mid-2000s. Now it’s sort of a random grab bag of music – local scenes in general aren’t nearly as important in the era of social media and streaming anyway which is a bummer. Honestly we are happy to have moved past having to beg to get booked for local shows. We’d much rather be on the road touring any day!”

What about general life, things are pretty volatile across the planet at the moment, have you witnessed / been involved in any of the protesting in LA ?

“Yes indeed, the world truly is upside down at the moment. But we feel there is a lot of good change to be had for all of us and an evolution of humanity; we can see it happening in front of our eyes. We have been very vocal on our platform to help spread awareness specifically with the “Black Lives Matter” movement. We think it’s important to use our voice not only for our music but to help with causes & help others progress by speaking up. Signing petitions & donating have been a norm for us for a while now, for BLM and other movements that fight for equality and justice such as the women’s rights movements, and for homeless & LGBTQ+ communities. We believe it’s time for all of us to get out of the cave & evolve; these old ways of thinking are outdated & need to be left in the dust. America has only been “justice for some” & it needs to evolve truly into “justice for all.””

When some sort of normality returns to the world, what do you hope we will all have learned from the last 4 months of craziness ?

“More patience, gratitude, kindness & self reflection.”

Finally, the new EP is out, what are your goals and hopes for the band and personally looking ahead to 2021 ?

“We are starting to compile material for our first full length album soon & then we’re looking forward to getting back on the road & non-stop touring to make up for lost time!”

Read our review of Dead Posey’s Malfunction EP and pick up your copy here.

Artwork for ‘Malfunction’ by Dead Posey