Dekleyn | Sun-drenched, indie-electro with an important message

We pick the hottest new live acts so you can tell your friends you heard them first. This week's pick is Sydney sun-drenched duo Dekleyn.

Dekleyn are not keen on taking things slow. If the fact that they released three EPs in three years isn’t enough to cement that, then the two stellar singles they’ve already dropped in 2020 should get you over the line.

But we aren’t complaining. Not one bit.

Because the Sydney duo – made up of Matthew DeCelis and Justin Kleyn – are serving up exactly the kind of indie-pop earworms we need right now.

Back in 2019, they gave us Thrive. Across the EP’s five tracks Dekleyn took impressive steps forward, diving deeper into the electronic influences we’d heard on previous releases Unsaid (2018) and Drive (2017), resulting in their strongest release to date.

2020 has seen the duo propel forward as they move toward the release of their debut album. Catchy lyrics and infectious melodies continue to be the backbone of their music, but now we can hear a confidence and assuredness in their blend of organic and electronic instruments that sees Dekleyn really lock into their signature sound.

Dekleyn started the year with a little dose of summer in ‘See Right Through Me’. The vibrant, nostalgia-filled tune floats along, showcasing the band’s knack for catchy hooks drenched in electronic goodness. Now, we welcome their latest single ‘One More Night’. Without losing any of Dekleyn’s signature goodness, thanks to an ‘80s-infused beat and dreamy harmonies the track sees the duo step into a more indie-rock lean.

The duo first started to turn heads a few years ago thanks to their catchy single ‘Ghost’. Since then, a series of stunning releases has led the band to share the stage with acts including Confidence Man, Fergus James, CLYPSO and Fractures, as well as selling out their own shows across their home city of Sydney.

We are expecting big things from Dekleyn in 2020, so we thought it was time to properly get to know them.

Dekleyn - One More Night (Official Audio)

Watch this video on YouTube

Photos by Cath Connell Photography

The Dekleyn Story

From the beginning

Dekleyn: “We both started making music together around 2014 while we were still in high school, doing covers on Youtube under the name ‘Small Talk’. We’d met on Facebook and decided to start jamming, and we quickly connected and began making videos.

“We ended up having a break for a couple of years while we were both doing the HSC. Afterwards, around the start of 2017, we linked back up and began Dekleyn.”

What you’ll hear

Dekleyn: “Our sound is best described as chill electro-pop. It’s a sound that is constantly evolving for us and we generally don’t try to fit ourselves into any particular mould. Whatever comes to us is what we make and that can generally take many different shapes and have a variety of sounds.

Influences & inspiration

Dekleyn: ” We are very heavily influenced by the sounds of The 1975, LANY, and Milky Chance. We also take a lot of inspiration from the production of people like ARIZONA, Valley, Ayokay, Vallis Alps etc. However, we definitely try to create our own sound, taking our influences and using them to guide us rather than try to recreate anything.”

For the love of music

Dekleyn: “We love being able to create tracks that we love, when we get to that moment where we’re listening to what we’re making and realise that other people may love this as much as we are. Making music that’s stage-ready is also exciting.”

Kicking goals

Dekleyn: “Playing shows with amazing Australian acts Fergus James and Fractures, as well as having our first interstate show at Pennyfest in Melbourne in 2019.

“Our debut sellout headline show in 2019 was a huge highlight, as well as our headline single release in early 2020 – two amazing nights for us as artists. Multiple New Music Friday placements on Spotify have also been awesome for us as small indie artists.

Having our tracks ‘Like This’ and ‘Ghost’ played on triple j were also huge milestones for us.”

The hard yards

Dekleyn: “Trying to break into the music scene as an indie act with minimal backing has been a challenge for us. We’ve put in a lot of work to get ourselves out there and get as many people listening to our music as possible and we hope to continue that further.”

The year ahead

Dekleyn: “We have a big TBA release planned for later this year, with the idea of a tour later in the year (COVID19 pending). If all goes to plan, it could be a big back end of the year for Dekleyn.”