Episode 58: Dreamdate

Although Oakland’s Dreamdate might broadly be classified under “indie pop,” it gets significant trickier when one tries to pin down a specific sound. Yea-Ming’s jangly guitars bring to mind early rock-and-roll as strongly as they do twee music, and the rhythm section provided by Anna and now-in-Seattle Emily can create a great garage-punk beat as adeptly as they can provide support during a quieter number. And, considering how darn catchy they are, the vocal melodies, frequently intertwining harmonies, and call-and-response parts can get pretty complicated. All of this is to say that this is one of those bands that exists in a unique space, and you just need to hear them play.

This is made perfectly evident on the band’s brand new debut full-length Come Over Now, which was released just last week on Chocolate Covered Records. The album’s ten tracks cover the gamut of tempos and tones, but the basic elements that make a Dreamdate song–great relationship-examining lyrics, tight instrumentals, and sweet vocal harmonies–are on display in all ten.

With the new record just out, we spoke to Anna and Yea-Ming last week at The Bay Bridged Headquarters to discuss the making of the album as well as how their backgrounds in music academia influence their sound and the often bittersweet stories in their lyrics. As a special exclusive, the girls brought over a guitar and performed several songs live in the studio. We’ve included their in-studio performance of How Low Are You, an unreleased song, in the episode along with three great songs from Come Over Now.

Dreamdate’s next show in the Bay Area is this Saturday night:

Saturday, April 7th
Hotel Utah
w/ The Rantouls and The Pets
9:00pm, $6, 21+

Visit the band over at their MySpace page and their web site. You can buy the brand new album at Chocolate Covered Records by clicking here.

Thanks for listening! We’ll be back with a brand new episode next week! Until then, come back to check out our regular updates covering the latest developments in the San Francisco indie music scene!