Plantoid On the Making Of “Dog’s Life”
Can you share any interesting or unique musical elements or production techniques used in "Dog’s Life?"
Dog’s Life was recorded live as a band with our faithful producer and friend Nathan Ridley at Echo Zoo Studios in Eastbourne. Everything was recorded on an MCI JH-16 Tape Machine. We recorded a few takes and then chose our favourite one. We then carefully layered guitar overdubs to curate a more psychotic dynamic. We got especially creative with guitars, using an EHX Freeze pedal to emulate synth pads heard in the verses, as well as using the tape machine for the higher octave guitar parts heard throughout the song. We did this by playing at half speed and then recording at full speed on playback. Some other interesting production techniques included using a synthesiser effects pedal on the guitar to blend into the actual guitar tracks especially heard in the intro as the live guitar fades to synth, and Louis’ vocal percussion where him
and Nathan couldn’t find the ‘sound’ in their heads, so tried to produce it vocally.
What was your favorite moment in making the music video?
We let Jasper aka Digistitcher have free roam on the music video after being introduced to his work through Simon Raymonde. We loved his use of digital fuckery and AI and thought his surreal approach to a visualiser would be perfect for the vibe of this track. After a brief discussion, he worked on and sent two versions, one more horror, and the other psychedelic. We loved both so managed to pick our favourite bits from each to create the final result. Our favourite part of this experience was to see how somebody else would envision our song.
Were there any challenges that you encountered while making the track?
We found getting the full weight and sound of the guitars across exactly how we wanted, to be somewhat of a challenge to start with, but it ultimately led us to experiment with many types of guitar sounds and amps/ pedal combinations. It was a lot of fun! A favourite used on this track was an old Marshall Drive Master pedal going through a 1974 Hiwatt Custom 100 amplifier at stupidly insane volumes.
How did your band members initially come together?
Me (Tom) and Chloe met at Lincoln College both studying a Music BTEC. We started writing songs together under the name Mangö and had a few different lineups over the years…The latest form of the band involves Louis, who I’ve known since secondary school when we became good friends. He joined the band when we ended up living in London together whilst at university. We then met our bassist Bernardo at a freshers event in the second year.
How do you approach creating something new and different?
There’s been many ways different songs have formed, but generally we try not to think about anything too much, and not judge what we make or box ourselves into any genre or scene. We just make what we like, and if others like it too then wahoo!
