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The Infectious New Release "She's a Mystery" From Dakota Theim Will Have You Grooving
- BUZZMUSIC
- Mar 30, 2020
- 4 min read
Dakota Theim is a Portland-based artist whose music comes out like a ray of endearment from a bygone age. His music usually has the themes of love, longing, and growing up; but manages to keep the music honest and catchy. Dakota Theim recently released his album 'Somewhere Under the Sun' and off of it is the infectious tune "She's a Mystery".
This record features a punchy indie drum kit, sparkly guitar lines, and an ear-catching vocal. "She's a Mystery" feels as if the Beetles were to release a song today, it is very well done. The vocal harmonies create a beautiful texture that compliments the lead vocal, the overall vocal energy is incredibly upbeat but also relaxed - you'll be able to kick it back to on the couch to this or listen to it at a party with your best friends. The instrumental aspect of this record is the third voice, the musicality of each part supports each other to create a full but tight experience that could take someone's breath away. There is a wonderful transition from the verse to the chorus that causes the chorus to explode into a happy bouncy ball of fun. There are a lot of great things about "She's a Mystery" and we recommend having a listen yourself to fully experience the colorful painting that Dakota Theim has laid out for us to hear.
Listen to "She's a Mystery" here.
Welcome to BuzzMusic Dakota Theim! We are loving your release "She's a Mystery"! What was the songwriting and production process for this and the whole album like?
Thank you very much, I’m happy to hear that! For "She’s a Mystery” I wanted to write kind of an upbeat, sing-a-longy style tune about love and how it can sometimes get quite complicated. The word “mystery” kept floating around in my head during the songwriting process so I decided to play on that. It turned out to be a fun little song and I’m really happy with it! I recorded the foundation of the song myself at my house—drums, bass, acoustic guitar, and vocals. The piano, lead guitar, and backup vocals were done at my guitar player Ben’s house with our bass player Alex as well. That was how it typically went for recording the whole album.
This record has a very very nostalgic feeling to it. What was the recording process and setup like? Did you learn anything new during its process?
This is my first record so it is also the first record I’ve recorded myself and with friends. It was definitely a trial and error type learning experience. The only song that was done in a proper studio was “Better Unsaid”. The rest was done at my house and Ben’s house with a very basic Pro Tools setup and like 3 mic’s. I didn’t want to get too caught up in all the gear hype, mainly because it can get expensive, but I didn’t have a ton of knowledge on it. I just wanted to keep it as simple as possible for my first record. I think the record turned out sounding pretty good anyway so we’re happy with it! It was mixed by Mike Coykendall, which made it sound a lot better. He’s an awesome person. All in all, I learned how to build a song up from the ground during the recording process. We can definitely hear some Beatles influence in this, were they an influence? What would your other influences be? What makes them an influence? The Beatles are absolutely an influence. I grew up listening to them and still regularly listen to them. I have always been attracted to this concept of timelessness so I strive to write timeless sounding songs. I think The Beatles achieved that in the 60s and that's why their music has stood the test of time so well. Some other big influences are Harry Nilsson, Brian Wilson, and Marvin Gaye. I also listen to a lot of Brazilian music…artists like Antonio Carlos Jobim and Astrud Gilberto. Love that stuff. Basically I just want to make timeless sounding songs that you could sing along to with your grandma. I think all of those artists I mentioned are well-loved by people of all ages. Your whole album "Somewhere Under the Sun" is an enjoyable listening experience. What was the inspiration for the whole album? Is there a story that you are telling throughout the album? Thank you very much! Lyrically, the album is inspired by experiences I’ve had in relationships, as well as the experience of navigating life in your early 20s. It’s definitely a weird time haha. Everyone is trying to figure out what they want to do with themselves and its kind of a weird time to be in a romantic relationship. That’s certainly the story behind the song “On the Run”. If there is a single story that I am trying to tell with this album, its that I’m saying to a lover, “I love you, but I’m trying to figure myself out right now. But no matter what, I’ll always be right here, Somewhere Under the Sun.”
