The Draco Volans have just released their debut EP. It’s got a breezably sway-worthy sound. It was great to get a few answers from band members Chris and Cale about their music and the EP.
Please tell us about Draco Volans. Sounds like years together, sometimes in very different places.
Cale and I (Chris) started playing together in middle school. We’ve been in about 4.5 bands together but things always ended when life got in the way. So we set off to make something long lasting that would be ours to control. The last band we were in ended when I moved to New Zealand. TDV’s songs started off by trading home recordings over the internet wherever we were.
What inspired you to release your debut album now?
We rerecorded and rewrote the songs over several years. Our music and recording techniques gradually improved over time. One day we were mixing and thought, “You know what, these are sounding pretty good.” People can fall down a rabbit hole with home recording. You can endlessly tweak and rerecorded things. We were finally proud of our music and it was time to start releasing it.
I’d like to learn more about Afternoon Lagoon please. Sounds like a travelling inspiration.
In New Zealand, I met a lovely Scottish lady. Our visas were up and we decided to travel around Southeast Asia before returning to our home countries. We went from Thailand to Laos to Vietnam. Afternoon Lagoon tells the story of that trip. We were having the time of our lives and quickly falling in love. But there was an underlying fear of our unknown future when it was time to return home. It’s an almost entirely happy song but there is that element of tension as well.
Duluth is gorgeous and a port city with a rich tradition of music and industry. Do you think you’re Duluth heritage shows in your music?
We spend a lot of time outdoors. Duluth, the North Shore, and the Boundary Waters are some of the most scenic areas in the world. You’re going to be inspired by that kind of thing. A lot of music I hear coming out of Duluth is beautiful and has a lot of meaning behind it. Hopefully we fit in that category as well.
I understand you are both living in Minnesota now. Does that mean we might get to see you play live? Get anything scheduled? Got any places you’d like to play?
Honestly, it might be a minute but putting together our live show is the #1 priority now that we are living in the same city. Cale and I wrote the music and a guest singer provided the vocals on our EP. Her voice is beautiful and brought our songs to life. Being behind the scenes in the studio is where she feels comfortable. Not on the stage. So if there are any singers in the area who like our sound, hit us up. 🙂
Mostly Minnesota 