Diving into the stimulating and enthralling atmospheres of alt-pop for their latest single, "Danced Herself to Death," the 5-piece collective The Wonderlands gives us all the grooves to dance the night away.
Headed by Miles Jena and Adam Steele, the two artists met as teenagers in church and later joined forces with friends Jill Gavigan, Derek Johnson, and Patrick Oakes to form their collective, The Wonderlands. Fusing music inspired by genres from jazz to alt-rock, The Wonderlands welcome us into their sound with open arms.
Highlighting their latest hit, "Danced Herself to Death," this single leads the way as the fan-favorite from their recent 9-track album, "The Digital Life." We're easily able to tell why this single has accumulated vast success and recognition, as The Wonderlands power through with groovy bass licks, vibrant pop production, and lead vocalist Miles Jena's exciting performance.
"Danced Herself to Death" sharply opens with a thumping kick alongside a hefty bassline that sets the song's exciting and exhilarating atmosphere. As Miles Jena begins singing of the prime being in her natural nightlife habitat and dancing herself six feet under, he inevitably gives us all the desire and enthusiasm to get back into the nightlife scene.
The accompanying instrumentation offers bright and organic elements through the warm acoustic guitar and groovy bassline. Simultaneously, the surrounding production pushes incredibly modern and precise arrangements that fuse the track with a darker tone. All while Miles Jena drives the song to the outro with his dynamic and energy-fueled performance, The Wonderlands have genuinely taken us back to better times with this anthemic release.
Find The Wonderlands' recent hit "Danced Herself to Death" on their latest album "The Digital Life," and stream the rest of their exciting discography on all streaming platforms.
We can't get enough of the energy and excitement within your latest hit, "Danced Herself to Death." What inspired your group to take on such an exhilarating piece like this?
This was an idea that Miles had a few months before we went in to record this. We knew it had to drive and carry a lot of energy to get the point across, but we did not know we were going to get there. Then, Jill, our keyboardist, actually came up with that driving bassline while we were in the studio and we knew we had a solid song on our hands.
Who handled the songwriting for your single "Danced Herself to Death"? How did you want your audience to feel from the song's lyricism?
Miles, our lead singer, wrote this song. It was never too much about evoking a specific feeling rather than telling the story of that girl at the party. We wanted the audience to experience her descent into complete loss of consciousness and sense of herself. It serves as a warning of the dangers of forgetting who you really are at heart.
Could you take us through the typical creative process for your group and how you formulated the sonics for your single "Danced Herself to Death"?
The typical creative process is Miles will bring in the structure or "bones" of the song, and then the band will fill in the gaps. Miles usually brings a general idea of chord changes and lyrics, then the other band members take it upon themselves to write specific parts. Derek, our drummer, is especially good at arranging songs so they make sense with the instruments we have at our disposal.
Could you tell us more about your album "The Digital Life"? What sort of concepts or approaches did you touch on within this project?
This Digital Life is an exploration of the human experience in the digital age. We all know something is not right, but it feels like no one can put their finger on it. The lyrics attempt to outline what it feels like to go every day feeling slightly controlled or "at the will of" a device, media, and general digital consciousness. Miles, our lead singer, has often struggled to feel a true human connection in this new era. Those songs explore that side of existence.
What can we expect next?
We will be putting out our second full-length album this summer. We just released the first single from said album, called "The Push". We also just dropped the music video for that song which you can find HERE. Also, the second single from this album entitled "Friends" will be out in late March with a music video as well. In between all of these things we release podcast episodes and BTS content all the time! All you have to do is follow us on Instagram or Tik Tok to find it @thewonderlandsband.