Dominic Angelella and Brent “Ritz” Reynolds have been making music together as DRGN King since 2009, and now, nearly four years later, all their hard work has paid off. After taking two years to write and record their debut album, Paragraph Nights, the LP will be released on January 22 via Bar None Records, and the now-quintet couldn’t be more excited to share their music with the world. Hailing from Philadelphia, the band prides itself in successfully incorporating a range of influences, from Wu-Tang Clan to Brian Eno and The Beatles. With such a diverse sound, DRGN King’s music appeals to fans of all genres, and because of this, it will be a band to look out for this year. Amidst getting ready to release the record, Angelella was nice enough to chat with me about the band’s beginnings, its incorporation of influences, and the hard work that went into making Parachute Nights.

Katrina Nattress: DRGN King began as a project between you and Ritz. What made you decided to flesh it out into a five-piece?

Dominic Angelella: Basic live necessity. Joe was playing drums on half of the record and he’s a great friend. When we played our first show, it wasn’t a question. We needed people to fill out the sound. Luckily, we have great friends that share our vision/craziness.

KN: What I love about your music is your use of standard instruments (guitar, bass, drums) mixed with production/effects. They are quite intricate and seem extremely well thought out. Take me through your writing/recording process.

DA: I write the lyrics and vocal melodies and Ritz and I write the instrumental pieces together. It’s a push and pull process. Every song on Paragraph Nights is a work of collaboration. Some of the songs were instrumentals written by Ritz that I wrote vocals to after the fact, and some were collaborations all the way through.

KN: In what form do the songs usually begin to take shape – vocals, guitar riff, etc.?

DA: Generally Ritz and I will sit down with an embryonic idea—a synth idea, a cool drum part, a riff, or a vocal line—and we’ll let it grow from there. It develops naturally and we fight with it a lot. We add lots of different little elements and then take some elements away, then do that again. Eventually the song is finished. Sometimes it takes two days, sometimes it takes months.

KN: You are gearing up to release your debut album, Paragraph Nights. Tell me about your experience making this album.

DA: Paragraph Nights is the result of two years of work. Ritz and I met and started working together in late 2009 and we finished recording the album in late 2011. In those two years, we learned how to be really close friends/co-workers. We learned a lot about each other’s temperaments and how we work on music. Now, making songs together is easy. The record is almost a process of us growing up and learning how to work with each other. We were both three years younger when we started Drgn King and a lot has happened since then. All of that’s in Paragraph Nights.

KN: On Facebook you say your band consists of four members and “many special guest.” Who did you collaborate with for Paragraph Nights?

DA: Our band members have shifted throughout the years. On Paragraph Nights we worked with our live drummer Joe Baldacci, who played all the live drums on the album. Julie and Eric Slick, who play in the Adrian Belew Power Trio and Dr. Dog respectively, contributed bass and helped us arrange some vocals. We worked with Frances Quinlan of Hop Along, Brendan Mulvihill of Norwegian Arms, Ross Munro of Toddler Kat. All of these are great Philadelphia bands. Our friend Charlie Patierno plays congas on a song. Our friend Andrew Black played monstrous bass on a few tracks. We reached out to some friends that were around and they helped out in any way they could.

KN: ??Do you have anything special planned for the release?

DA: We’re doing some record release shows, and we’ll be travelling to SXSW. We’re also putting out videos, doing remixes, trying to have fun.

KN: Your influences range from The Beatles to The Flaming Lips and Wu-Tang. In what ways do you think your music pulls from these varied influences?

DA: Ritz and I have tons of different influences that shine through in Drgn King. There are elements of everything that shine in our music. Ritz is a serious jazz/hip-hop/Brian Eno-head, and I love art-rock and Three Six Mafia. There’s a lot of bleed-over in our record collections, and I think that’s where Drgn King exists.

KN: You live in Philadelphia. How do you feel this affects your music (if at all)?

DA: Paragraph Nights is a collection of short stories about people who live in Philadelphia. Almost none of it is autobiographical. I always wanted this record to be like a group of inter-connected short stories that would work as a whole experience. Sort of a weird dream-world version of young Philadelphia.

KN: What were your Top 5 albums of 2012?

DA: My favorite records of 2012 were Ab-Soul’s Control System, Scott Walker’s Bish Bosch, Ariel Pink & Haunted Graffiti’s Mature Themes, Swans’ The Seer, and Frank Ocean’s Channel Orange. Probably the new Kendrick Lamar too.

KN: What are DRGN King’s plans/goals for 2013?

DA: We’re gonna release our record, play a ton of shows, and put out a bunch of new music and videos. Basically, we’re gonna do what we’ve always done. I’m excited for people to hear everything we have to share.

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