SHALLOW DIVE

Formed in 2024, Shallow Dive are a three-piece indie alternative rock band from New Zealand consisting of D'Angelo (singer, bassist, songwriter), Isaac (drummer), and Mitchell (guitarist). D'Angelo grew up listening to numerous artists from the 1980s, particularly in the New Wave and underground scene. Along side this influence of groups like The Cure, Talk Talk, Simple Minds, and Depeche Mode, the post-punk and indie works of the early 2000s played a big part in how Shallow Dive would develop a sound both new and reminiscent of previous eras.

D'Angelo and Isaac began working together on music aged 13 and 11 for the national secondary school band competition in New Zealand known as Smokefreerockquest. Isaac, a multi-instrumentalist, was inspired by the drumming of Led Zeppelin's John Bonham which helped form his unique mix between upbeat punk and heavy rock style. Mitchell had tinkered with playing acoustic guitar for some time before Shallow Dive, with an interest in alternative rock and hard rock groups such as Weezer and The Foo Fighters.

Shallow Dive did their debut public performance at the Paraoa Brewing Co., and were pleased to share a few songs of what would become the Weight Of It All album shortly after. At the time, only Lightless and Something Never Said were released as singles, however most of the 10 tracks from the record were already written out as instrumentals and were ready for vocals. The bulk of the writing process for a Shallow Dive song happens in a couple days, and then it is a matter of fine-tuning ideas and adding vocals. For their sophomore album, D'Angelo aims to make music that, "sticks with the listener; something that aligns with the sound of Weight Of It All but is inherently different. It's hard to make a record where every track is good, but that's what I'm striving for."