This Subang-Bred Indie Boy Band Produced An Entire EP From Their Bedrooms During Lockdown
TY:DEL released their EP on 16 April, which you can listen to on Spotify now!
By Tamara Jayne — 16 Apr 2021, 11:27 AM
It's one thing to be a bedroom or bathroom singer, and another thing to actually produce an entire album from your home.
That's exactly what this Malaysian boy band did.
Meet TY:DEL, an up-and-coming indie band made up of four members, Ritchie, Carlson, Timothy, and Roshan, who spent their time in quarantine writing and producing music.
Their latest EP titled, To Anyone Listening, which just dropped on 16 April, was impressively recorded from their homes – mainly Tim's bedroom – during the Movement Control Order (MCO) period.
Over countless voice calls, video calls, and text messages, these guys put together five songs, which center around the experiences of youth in transition to adulthood.
Or in other words, as they say, "It's 'Things We Learned At 21'".
In an interview with SAYS, Subang-bred electric guitarists and vocalists, Ritchie and Tim, along with Carlson, the band's keyboardist, reveal that they were bandmates in high school where they first met.
TY:DEL began with the trio back then, while Roshan, the newest member and drummer, officially joined them in June last year.
They've come a long way since then, having started by doing covers to now producing their own music.
Their previous single, so in love (tonight), talks about the importance of self-love and body positivity. It was released in March and has had over 26,400 streams on Spotify to date, while No Turning Back in 2019 has garnered over 238,000 plays.
As they've been learning to 'adult' in recent years, the boys share that their latest EP is inspired by personal lessons, such as the importance of investing in relationships, living life at their own pace, and trusting the process.
Combining the music tastes of all four members, the band shares that their sound is a blend of pop, R&B, soul, rock, punk, and contemporary
You'll hear much of the inspiration, especially in their earlier singles, from bands like The 1975 and LANY.
However, the boys also reveal influences, such as PRETTYMUCH, HONNE, Lauv, Keshi, Peach Tree Rascals, Drake, and The Weeknd, among others.
"Although we'd often refer to big names like the ones mentioned, our thought process would always be to include things that we'd genuinely like to convey and add our own style to it," Carlson shares.
Having to make the most of the situation during the lockdown, Ritchie jokingly calls the band 'self-proclaimed Kings of DIY'
"We try to DIY everything if possible like we even made a mic stand out of rubber bands and a random tripod," Tim shares with SAYS.
"We had a bunch of photoshoots planned for our EP and singles but because of the travel and gathering ban, we had to improvise. Our content for our recent release so in love (tonight) is my favourite example! The props in the album cover art were a fridge and a bunch of snacks and the music video? It was basically a mukbang. HAHA. We also recycled Tim's presentation boards by spray-painting our brand and EP theme onto them (these were used as props in future music videos)," adds Ritchie.
Meanwhile, Roshan explains that they recorded the vocals in wardrobes and different corners of Tim's room. "Experimenting is what we do best! [Learning] is something we never wanna stop no matter how big or good we get."
"We didn't have Simon Cowell or a label to bring us together, we DIY-ed that too! We can all sing and one day maybe some choreography too (who knows?)," Tim chimes in.
This feature is part of the #saysplaylist series, providing your playlist with a breath of fresh Malaysian air
