Pop/punk duo davvn have a confession to make. The group will release its newest single, “Depressed in Heaven,” on April 7. The song is a reflective look at how temporary happiness is and how unhappy people are all the time. In the accompanying music video, the band’s lead singer McCall Bliss takes center stage and plays an angel who is seeking happiness in the afterlife. Fans of the band are in for a visual treat when the video debuted the following week. Check out the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?
DAVVN: Mike and I met in their senior year of college in Boston and instantly bonded over our shared love for music. We both had been in bands before over the years, but this one was something very special. We ended up talking and started dating and the project just continued on. We most recently decided to make the move from Boston to Nashville in order to really pursue our music career as best we can.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
DAVVN: We’re mostly self-taught! Mike picked up guitar from a young age and played in several bands in high school and college. He started producing music to make demos for these bands and eventually started production for some of the earlier davvn tracks. McCall played guitar and wrote songs in more of a singer-songwriter style in high school, and continued on in college. Since then, she’s been working with a vocal coach as well, but overall we’re mainly self-taught!
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘DAVVN’?
DAVVN: Our biggest influences to start were artists like Avril Lavigne, Michelle Branch, and Fall Out Boy. We’re influenced by tons of the earlier 2000s artists, since that’s the music we grew up on. It’s awesome to see some of this coming back into the mainstream again. The name “davvn” came from the bittersweet feeling that you get from the end of the night and the start of a new day. Our album art and our photos bring in a lot of the pink and blue colors of dawn.
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
DAVVN: We like to call our sound “imperfect pop”. We bring in a lot of influences from multiple genres that we’re listening to – pop, rock, electronic, and others. Everything always has some sort of guitar element to it, and we love a big heavy chorus too. We’re hoping that listeners can relate to our lyrics and our themes about getting through the hard times in life and making the best of it.
5. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
DAVVN:
Usually we start with either a concept for the tag line or a guitar riff and then find a melody over the top that feels right! We’ve got tons of demos that we usually sit on before figuring out which one we want to go ahead and produce out and finalize. We definitely love to co-write and work with other producers as well to make sure that the song turns out the best it can. I think the more eyes you have on a project the better, usually.
6. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as ROCK?
DAVVN: Songwriting is definitely a journey, and I feel like it took us a while to really find the sound that we wanted to make. We started off emulating some more electronic and ethereal sounding artists before bringing back more of our rock roots and really feeling like we were making something that felt natural. We’ve learned a ton from co-writing here in Nashville and I feel like that’s really helped us to make something more original.
7. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative, and entertainment?
DAVVN: I think that music can play a huge role in helping to influence and spread messages about all of these topics, and I’m always excited to hear new songs about politics or social change. We’ve been trying to incorporate this more into our writing as well, it’s always hard to do it and make sure that it comes off the right way.
8. With social media having a heavy impact on our lives and the music business in general, how do you handle criticism, haters, and/or naysayers in general? Is it something you pay attention to, or simply ignore?
DAVVN: At first when we were receiving hate on our song “fvcked up lullaby” we were pretty hurt by some of the comments, and it was starting to wear on our confidence in our musical abilities. But as we continued to put out more music and share on TikTok, we realized that controversy or hate is just one of the signs that you’re doing something unique or new. People are always going to have mixed reactions to new things, and hopefully it’s positive – but a good sign that you’re onto something is getting a little bit of hate.
9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
DAVVN: Honestly, we haven’t had too much to complain about so far! There’s been a few moments where we feel like giving up or like it’s impossible to stand out in the industry, but I think that perseverance is huge in music.
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
DAVVN: We’re really proud of what we’ve been writing recently in Nashville, and also of how far we’ve come in the past year. From our collaboration with Bowling For Soup to our song fvcked up lullaby that got placed on “Fresh Finds” on Spotify, it’s been a ton of firsts for us. We’re so excited about what’s to come next year!
11. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
DAVVN: Right now we’re really happy with the success we’ve been seeing across social media and on Spotify, hoping that it continues! It’s always fun to make the art, but it’s more fun when people can interact with and appreciate it.
12. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?
DAVVN: We really love performing live! I think that’s our favorite part about making music, is getting to share the songs we’ve written to a live audience. The songs really feel like they become a different and more powerful version of what we recorded. It’s amazing to see a crowd react to different parts and to get to have this special moment with them.
13. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?
DAVVN: I think that we’d love to have fans understand the message that we were hoping to get across in a song, but if they understand it in a personal way, that’s great as well! I think that people all connect to and interpret music in a different way, whether that’s through lyrics or melody or through just the vibe of a song. There have been plenty of songs that I’ve loved and connected with deeply that I never knew the full meaning of for years.
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