Hills End is a collection of the three friends' endeavours over the past three years and, sometimes, beyond coming to fruition. It's a record that takes each individual's own influences – folk artists like Dylan for Took, “American guitar bands from the ‘90s,” for Mason and English bands passed down to O'Dell by his older brother and Liverpudlian dad like The Beatles, The Stone Roses and The La's – and throws them all in one big mixing pot. 'Blown Away’ is a crestfallen ode to one of Took's friends leaving Australia for a new life overseas, all distant, crunching beats, stoic strings and solemnly strummed guitars. Album opener ‘Timeless’, meanwhile, is a brash and blustering mix of chiming, Pixies-esque lines from Mason and an intense, barked vocal from O'Dell. ‘In The Moment’ lopes like O'Dell's beloved Roses, and 'Too Soon’'s chorus boasts the rough and ready riffs of Nirvana's grunge glory days. It's that that makes DMA'S music so enticing – on first listen you might think you've got them pegged with the obvious, but give them another spin with a closer ear and all kinds of varied nuances start bringing themselves to light.
Hills End was recorded partially in a studio in Coogee, Sydney, but “the most important” bits were done in Took's old flat at Buckland Lane. Every morning when he woke up, he'd flip the mattress against the wall, settle down to write or record, then flip it back down when it was time to sleep. He, too, was the album's main producer, foregoing someone with more knowledge to maintain the band's control over the results – with Dylan Adams taking on the engineering role. “We didn't have much engineering experience when we started, but it was all about the tunes,” he explains nonchalantly. Mason adds: "I think there's something kind of nice about co-producing your first record. It's made it a really good representation of what the band are.” Saying that, the band were open to suggestions when Dave ‘Spike’ Stent (Massive Attack, Madonna, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Depeche Mode) offered to mix the record, which he then did in London and LA last autumn.
Their creative drive and curiosity combined with their unflappable outlook and sheer, undeniable talent has, in Hills End, already produced a body of work that's both intriguing and captivating. With gigs and festivals across the globe, from Australia's Laneway Festival to California's Coachella, DMA'S will be unstoppable in 2016.