Dehd

Chicago's Dehd distinguished themselves through a blunt, minimal aesthetic whose catchy pop compositions brimmed with reverberation while relying on sparse percussion, forceful singing, and spare instrumentation. Positive reception for their early output combined with relentless roadwork expanded their audience, and the band's aesthetic gained greater clarity across 2020's Flower of Devotion and the more introspective 2022 release Blue Skies. To prepare their 2024 album Poetry the members journeyed across multiple American locales, capturing an atmosphere of restless exploration and discovery in the resulting songs.

The group originated in 2015 when Chicago-based musicians Jason Balla and Emily Kempf recruited their acquaintance Eric McGrady to handle drums. Previously inexperienced on the instrument, McGrady employed only a floor tom and snare; this economy extended to Dehd's overall sonic palette, in which reverberant vocal harmonies floated over direct compositions that drew on girl-group theatricality, the lo-fi clamor of C-86 acts, the Jesus and Mary Chain, and traces of Gun Club's gloom alongside B-52s exuberance. The band issued a self-titled debut in 2016 and maintained a steady touring schedule. In 2017 they issued the six-song EP Fire of Love. Emotional turbulence following a romantic split informed the material on 2019's Water, an album that earned widespread critical acclaim.

The trio followed quickly the next year with Flower of Devotion, whose elevated production and sharper articulation of their wistful, atmospheric style marked a clear evolution. The record appeared in July 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic's suspension of live performances. While awaiting a return to the stage, Dehd assembled Flower of Devotion Remixed, a companion collection featuring reinterpretations by Lala Lala, Miranda Winters, Protomartyr, Freak Heat Waves, and additional artists. Their fourth full-length, Blue Skies, emerged in May 2022, showcasing further refinement through cleaner production, understated electronic elements, and lyrics that addressed emotion with greater directness.

For the subsequent project Dehd crisscrossed the country, working at an Earthship in New Mexico—now Kempf's residence—and at a cabin in Washington. During the drive back to Chicago, Balla and McGrady struck a deer, wrecking their van and leaving them stranded in Montana for several days. The sense of perpetual motion and unpredictability permeated the emotional character of the finished album, Poetry, issued in May 2024.