Birmingham indie-pop band DAME are a quartet that needs to be on your playlist. I sat down and chatted with the outfit about hidden talents, the Birmingham music scene and their latest release, ‘Bite’.

Introduce yourselves and your hidden talent!

Shan: Hello hello! We’re DAME and we’re an alt-pop band originally from Birmingham. We all met at university there, with me (Shan – Lead Singer) recruiting Jake (Guitar/Producer), Matt (Drums) and George (Bass). Me (Shan) and Matt have currently sold our souls to work full time in Marketing in London, George is a doctor and has been helping out on the Covid ICU’s over the past year, and Jake is hanging on to every last bit of uni he can by doing a masters. Our collective hidden talent is that we do an absolutely banging School of Rock cover which we’ve been known to whip out at gigs sometimes. I (Shan) am a nerdy trombone player at heart too which not many people know!

What’s your writing process like? Do you write the music or lyrics first?

Jake: Usually the music. Shan used to write all the songs on guitar/piano then bring them to the band to work out an arrangement. I (Jake) have come a bit more into the frame with writing as the band’s developed, and especially since Covid. I’ve learnt to produce over the last year so have been sending a lot of instrumentals (of varying quality) Shan’s way to topline. However, we find the best songs are just written at a guitar/piano with us in the room. So we’re looking forward to being able to do that more often as restrictions lift!

If you could collaborate with anyone dead or alive, who would it be?

Shan: This is such a difficult question – there are so many we’d choose!! I think I’d personally have to say Arctic Monkeys – it would be a weird mix but then I’d get to meet Alex Turner? (Shan). Jake would 100% pick the 1975.

Jake: Hate to say it but she’s right. Maybe MUNA too?

What’s the music scene like where you are from?

Jake: We met in Birmingham, and came up alongside a fantastic group of bands at the University of Birmingham – shout out Odd Soul, Abi Farrell, Sam Jackson, Shai Brides, harico and sooooo many more! BBC Introducing West Midlands have really championed us and we’re very grateful to be a part of the Birmingham scene. Nowadays we’re mostly London based, with me (Jake) being the only one hanging on in Birmingham. We’ve met some fantastic bands in London and the crowds are always super energetic. We’re really looking forward to getting back on stage this summer!

Tell MoggBlog viewers about your latest release! What’s the inspiration behind that?

Shan: Our latest release is called ‘Bite’ and it was written in the peak of my uni days when I when I was sick of crying and writing love songs over boys that didn’t fancy me back (lol), so instead I wanted to put my emotions to the side and write a song about putting myself first. It’s meant to be an empowering bop, drawing lyrical inspiration from songs like ‘Boys’ by Charlie XCX and ‘Rude Boy’ by Rihanna – I wanted the lyrics to be much more about the physical rather than the emotional.

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