Dreaming Soda’s glimmering debut single Caramel is joyful, laden with nostalgia and provides a sweet precursor to the duo’s forthcoming EP. Excitingly, there is also a comic book project in the works, entitled ‘Just Before The Internet’ – both due for release on July 27. Between Ella Starland and Renee Stein, ‘Dreaming Soda’ is a completely singular experience, combining a visually stunning comic book with the glitter and euphoria of Ella’s nuanced and impressive song writing and production.
If writing a truly, satisfyingly happy song is a challenge for most, then Dreaming’s songwriter Ella Starland has well and truly achieved it with ‘Caramel’s’ bliss-laden perfection. Evocative of the eccentric Superorganism, Architecture in Helsinki and millennial treasures Phoenix, the track feels every bit as indulgent as its name suggests. It floats along with bubbly, percolating production and is bolstered by a totally infectious topline. Speaking about the inspiration behind the song, Ella says: “On the surface, ‘Caramel’ kind of seems like a flirty song about new love – ‘I like you but it’s way too soon’ – but for the most part, the lyrics are truly just related to baking. It’s literally specific motifs about sugar boiling, and not adjusting the perfect biscuit recipe.”
Dreaming Soda will be celebrating the release of comic ‘Just Before The Internet’ with a show at The Leadbeater Hotel on August 9, where fans will be able to purchase a physical copy of the comic book, and enjoy especially-made Dreaming Soda-themed cocktails!
Dreaming Soda has a clear intention, both with Caramel as a single and the EP/comic book project as a whole: to speak to the specific nostalgia felt by the zillennial – not quite Gen Z, not quite millennial, it’s the kids who still have blurry visions of the world before the internet, but now can’t quite seem to stop scrolling in time for bed. The visual, musical project was backed by a horde of eager fans on Kickstarter, where Ella crowdfunded the money to print the accompanying comic book for the EP’s release.
Clear and passionate about the meaning behind Dreaming Soda and Just Before The Internet, Ella explains: “‘Just Before the Internet’ has been designed to work as a bit of a sci-fi story; you start off in this glitchy warm world, that becomes unstable and strange, like Alice falling down the rabbit hole. Where you end up is in a very Pixar-esque ‘core memory’ world of some of your most transformative happy moments. Each track describes how your understanding of relationships and love (familial and platonic) have evolved to make you the person you are in the ‘real world’.”
DREAMING SODA EP LAUNCH SHOW:
TUES AUG 9 | LEADBEATER HOTEL, MELBOURNE VIC | 18+
