If you wander for too long within the world of dream pop, things start to blur together in a haze of blurry-eyed melodies and vaguely-defined contours. You walk through these hypnogogic landscapes, half-remembering how you got here in the first place and wondering as to the best way to get out. But then you come across Dog Monologue — the side project from Ben VanderHart (Telemonster) and Chase Waller (El Rocko) — and their new single, “Sun Over the Zoo”.
The two musicians first met when VanderHart produced Waller’s first single as El Rocko and discovered that they both possessed a shared affection for gauzy pop melodies and duct-taped songcraft. Their love of these sounds and production aesthetic would keep each other in close orbit, leading them to collaborate on occasion before finally realizing this new world of Dog Monologue. As their debut song, “Sun Over the Zoo” is a bleary bit of pop mischief, draped in hazy vocal melodies while employing an array of synths against a tumbling percussive thump. The work of violinist Sam Miller is effortlessly blended into this atmosphere of pop opacity. If just for a few minutes, submerge yourself in the song’s dreamy undercurrents. If you want to pull yourself out afterwards, that’s your call to make.
Watch the Davy Granberry-directed video below.
“Sun Over the Zoo” is out now on Yellow Racket Records. You can purchase the single here. Follow the band on Instagram.
