The Mowgli’s are prepping their Photo Finish Records debut and hope to have their new album released by later this spring. The octet most recently received praise for their Love’s Not Dead EP, which includes the hit song, “San Francisco.” Singer, Colin Louis Dieden, sat down with Alternative Addiction to discuss the EP as well as the forthcoming record.
The Love’s Not Dead EP can most simply be described as a California blend of indie-pop but to truly gain an understanding and appreciation for what the Mowgli’s are all about, you have to listen to the album multiple times (and you’ll be much happier once you do). By combining infectious melodies with uplifting lyrics, the band will most likely remind you of some of the music from the 60s and 70s; there is an unquestionable emphasis on universal love and togetherness, and each song has the potential to put a smile on your face regardless of how you were feeling previously.
“Even with all the projects that I’ve done, this is the first time in my life that I’ve set an intention…with this band, we actually had a conversation where we communicated to each other that we wanted to take this music and this gift we have, and make people as happy as possible. We want the fans to leave the show and feel unbelievably good so that the next human interaction that they have is a better one than the last. Our goal is to keep people feeling great because there’s so much hurt in the word – I feel it, you feel it. I don’t want to bring people more of that; everyone has their own experiences to hold onto and their own hurt. There is a little bit of that in Mowgli’s but it’s more so that we’re trying to heal that.”
Although the EP may only be five songs in length, the album has plenty to offer and leaves listeners anxious for the release of the group’s upcoming full length disc. There are moments on the album that make you want to jump out of you chair and dance, and there are others that leave you in deep thought and reflection. Here at AA, we asked Dieden about the inspirational “Carry On” to learn a little more about the acoustic track.
“That was a song that Michael brought to the table; both he and our keyboard player, David, really wrote that one. I wasn’t involved on making that track but I do sing on it…without speaking for anyone else, from what I understand when writing that song Michael was trying to jar people awake and make them realize that right now is right now; so it’s intended to be an awakening of sorts. It’s right there in the lyrics – ‘cherish this because when it doesn’t last, you’ll wish you had.’”
Currently, The Mowgli’s are working tirelessly in the studio as they aim for a May release for their new LP. With the help of the label, the band was able to bring in a series of artists for co-writing sessions, something the group had never done before. Specifically, The Mowgli’s wrote with Andrew McMahon (Something Corporate, Jack’s Mannequin), Captain Cuts, multi-platinum producer Matt Squire, and Evan Bogart.
“I’ve written with people that I never thought I’d even meet…I love the idea of all of it. I just love to write in general and that’s why this is my dream job. The most fun thing for me to do in the world is write songs and I think that’s why I was immediately attracted to it as a kid. So now I’m getting the opportunity to do that with friends. It’s just been so great to be able to sit in a room with a bunch of people and build a song; it’s almost like putting a puzzle together and it’s super fun. My whole life I’ve been writing songs by myself so now this new experience is so different and interesting.”
Though many bands will re-record tracks after initially co-writing them with another artist, Dieden commented that The Mowgli’s have no plans to do this for their new album. As the vocalist explained, there is a certain amount of beauty a song has when it is first recorded, and it can lose that element when it’s polished over for a second time in the studio.
“I don’t think that we’re going to re-record all of these songs to put on the full length album. A lot of bands will do their co-writes but when they compile the record, they’ll then go and record everything all in one studio so it’s this cohesive and copasetic sounding thing – I just don’t think that’s the route we’re going to take. For instance, during the Captain Cuts session we had created something that was beautiful and I don’t want to change that and smooth it out just so we can try to make it fit the rest of the record; that was a moment in time that existed.”
From March 13th to the 16th, the Mowgli’s will be playing at SXSW in Austin, TX before then beginning a full length U.S. tour.
