Los Dedos, the instrumental surf rock trio from Bristol, UK, are riding the wave of success once again with their latest EP, 'El Salado'.
The lead single and title track, 'El Salado', offers a tantalizing glimpse into the sonic world of the EP and is already making waves on streaming platforms and YouTube, where its accompanying music video has been captivating viewers.
To celebrate the release of the new EP, the band were kind enough to chat with us about how it came together, what inspired them, and their 'exotic cinematic' sound
It’s so great to be able to catch up with you, thanks for taking the time to answer some of our questions. Let’s dig right into things, when did you first start making music?
"No worries, thanks for having us!"
"The band started back in 2020, during the dark days of Covid lockdown! After a few weeks of being trapped inside, and once everyone had run out of films to watch, the demos started flying over WhatsApp."
"Eventually, when the restrictions were lifted and we could get into the practice room we brought the demos to life. It was cool to start with a lot of material. It meant that we could get things up and running at a pace."
What inspired you to start your journey into music?
"Myself (Sam, drums) and Willy (Guitar) were in a band together for years based in Bristol, which is an amazing spot for music in the UK. It has a rich and diverse scene and some massive names in music have been born here. Quite a few of the UK festivals operate out of here too & there are loads of venues so it's a pretty inspiring place to start a band up. When our last band came to an end, Willy was looking to start up a surf/garage project, something simple with three members, he'd met Picu through a mutual friend who was keen to get involved. It all started pretty organically really. We just wanted to get together and jam out in the beginning but things have been growing nicely."
What influences most define your music?
"In no particular order: Dick Dale, Link Wray, Mezcal, Quentin Tarantino, Reverb, Langhorns, David Lynch, The Sonics, Ennio Morricone."
How would you describe your sound?
"Wild and exotic cinematic surf rock!"
"Oh, and it's instrumental..."
Can you tell us a bit more about the new EP?
"'El Salado' is our third EP, released on US label Otitis Media Records. With this one we were keen to make it a bit longer so we went for 6 tracks - Our previous release 'March of the Crabs' was four tracks which we put out on a 7" last year. Over the last few years our sound has evolved so this time round it was important to us that we showcase the mixture of different styles within our music, it has elements of classic surf, Spaghetti Western, garage rock, dark blues, and exotica."
What was your songwriting process? How did it all come together?
"We wrote the tunes over a few months. Usually someone will bring a riff or idea into the practice room where we get to work turning it into a song together. They generally get tweaked once we've tried it live, you quickly figure out what works and what doesn't when you play it to an audience! Next up we'll demo the tracks, before selecting which will make it onto the record. This time round we headed out to Giant Wafer Studios, a beautiful spot in Wales, with our long-time friend and engineer Ben Capp and got to work on recording."
What’s the most important thing for you when you’re writing a song?
"That it doesn't have vocals! Ha. Never say never but we are an instrumental band and currently have a three-word rule in place - Anything more than three words in a song is totally unacceptable!"
"I think, for us we just want to have as much fun as possible when we're playing. When we're working on new ideas we quickly know if it is a vibe or whether it needs to go in the boneyard of bad ideas. If we're feeling it and can see it in the live set or on our next recording, it's exciting!"
What’s next for you as an artist?
"We've got a fun summer of gigs lined up, starting this weekend when we play our first festival. Looking forward to getting out there and blasting out the new set which we've been working on recently. We love playing live! Each time it allows us the chance to connect with a new audience, we play a niche style of music so often people don't know what to expect when we come on stage but we take them on a wild, cinematic journey and it often ends in chaos!"
"We're always writing, so we'll keep on with that. We're looking to get back in the studio next year and record our first full-length LP."
Do you have anything you would like to say to our audience?
"Yo! Hopefully see you at a show sometime. Give us a follow on the socials if you like what you hear, Nice one and Big love from the UK!"
Released on US label Otitis Media Records, this eagerly anticipated EP will be available for digital download and streaming on all major platforms from April 25th, 2024. Fans can also get their hands on limited edition 10" vinyl and CD copies, making this release a collector's dream.
Formed in 2020 by Willy Malo (guitar), Picu Moreno (bass), and Sam Bigland (drums), Los Dedos recorded El Salado at the renowned Giant Wafer Studios in Wales, with Ben Capp at the helm as engineer and mixer. The EP was then mastered by Nick Burchall of Audio Animals, ensuring a sonic experience that's as polished as it is powerful.
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