Dotsun Moon’s ‘Tiger’ an Exceptional Sonic Journey: ‘It’s the Album I Always Wanted to Make’
- matt smith
- 2 days ago
- 7 min read
(EDITOR’S NOTE — On its new album ‘Tiger,’ Dotsun Moon pulls off something rather remarkable. Richard Flierl — a.k.a Richard Datsun, the artistic force behind the band — has not only written songs of vivid imagery, he’s created a moody and sweeping cinematic landscape of sound, where shoegaze, dream pop and trip-hop meld with new wave and postpunk making for a distinctive sonic experience. The eight-track LP conjures the ethereal and neo-psych sound of Echo & the Bunnymen and M83, with hints of Portishead. Prominent throughout the album is the poignant, and sometimes haunting, guitarwork, which, combined with embedded vocals, results in a record that simultaneously evokes feelings of both desolation and hope. Flierl has a created a work in which you can get completely, and comfortably, lost in. Unlike past Dotsun Moon albums, ‘Tiger’ is entirely a solo effort that features Flierl taking on vocals. Recorded at Watchmen Studios in Lockport, the album was engineered, mixed and mastered by Doug White who also lends some guitar on the LP. Tiger is available on streaming platforms. You can also purchase the release on Dotsun Moon’s Bandcamp page HERE, as well as on CD at area record stores including Revolver Records, Black Dots, Hi-Fi Hits and Vinny’s Records. Flierl was nice enough to speak with 1120 Press recently about the new album. Please read our story below and be sure to view the videos for the songs ‘Never Had a Heart,’ ‘Give Up the Tears’ and ‘Bring Love.’)
1120 PRESS: Thank you for speaking with us. Congratulations on the new album. How are you feeling now that it’s out?
RICHARD FLIERL: I'm happy with it. I mean, it's the album I always wanted to make. When I started, it was supposed to be a shoegaze/trip-hop thing, which I thought would have been a cool mix. When I started this band, I didn't really know what I was doing. So, it didn't happen. It never came to fruition. But this time, I really wanted a shoegaze album. I don't even know if it really is. Maybe it's dream pop, I don't know. But that was kind of the goal, so I'm happy with it and people are actually buying it, which is nice.
1120: Sonically, it immediately took us back to Echo & the Bunnymen, Psychedelic Furs, New Order and that kind of sound. It’s completely different than your previous albums which had a more electronic feel. The guitar work, in particular, stands out and really sets the tone. There's not a lot of bands with your sound in Buffalo.
RF: That's good to hear. I can't even remember how to play half the guitar parts now (laughs). Anyway, no matter what I put out, everyone always says ‘the 80s.’ I don't do that intentionally, whatsoever. I just play what sounds good to me and I guess because I love the first four Bunnymen albums and the early New Order and stuff like that, I guess it comes out that way.
1120: A second part of this question, because it focuses on production, is what also really stands out is the way the vocals are kind of embedded into the songs rather than having them pulled forward. What was the thinking there?
RF: So, I wanted to work with Doug, and if you know anything about Doug, he is a shoegaze guru. I mean, he was in Tearwave and he said that on Tearwave’s second or third album, they decided they wanted to bring the vocals up to try to hook more people that maybe weren't into shoegaze. He said the end result, instead, was that some of their more-diehard shoegaze fans were not happy with that approach. He was like, ‘you gotta trust me on this.’ So, I listened to him.
1120: So, then, are you happy with the outcome on the vocals?
RF: Yeah, I'm incredibly happy with the vocals. Friends of mine were like, ‘dude, you gotta put your vocals up front, man. Vocals up front.’ But I'm like, ‘It's not that kind of album, you know?’ and people seem to be enjoying it.
1120: Some of the songs on this album were released as singles in May and April and others hadn't been released yet. Then there were a few you released back in July 2024? Was the plan always to do an LP or was that a gradual decision? What played into your decision to go back and include the older songs?
RF: I had two songs on the ‘So Get Up’ EP (2024) and then I had ‘Bring Love’ that was out as a single (in 2024). I wasn’t getting any traction and so I decided if I really want to try to promote my work I would need an album. So, whenever I would go to Doug's I just started holding on to the songs, putting them in an order, and making videos for them. It just seemed like it was time for an album because I'd been putting out so many singles. The big thing now is putting out singles, but I think sometimes people want to listen to an album.
1120: After our initial listen, we thought the album had a moodiness to it. Then,
after listening several more times, this uplifting element started to emerge from many of the songs. Is there something that you're hoping listeners grab and take away from these songs, or are you more about letting people take away what they want?
RF: I definitely was going for a certain vibe. For instance, remember Peter Gabriel’s album, ‘So’? It had ‘Sledgehammer’ and ‘Big Time’ on it, and they were just so jarring (in comparison to the rest of the album.) I didn't want anything that seemed like it was coming out of left field. I wanted a smooth ride, like the Bunnymen's ‘Heaven Up Here’ or M83s ‘Before the Dawn Heals Us.’ There's a certain vibe that’s maintained all the way through on those records. That's really what I wanted.
1120: Sometimes when we’re writing about new music, we like to play that music for other people and not tell them who they're listening to and just ask them to let the music seep in and to let us know they think. And here’s a quote we got from someone, and we want to know what you think of it: ‘There's almost a spiritual quality to this music in a non-religious sense. It feels like I'm wading into a warm bath and I'm being enveloped by the water.’
RF: Wow. That’s so flattering. That's huge. I've said this so many times: My whole goal and hope for any of my songs or albums is I hope that if someone gets into them that it fills a niche that they can't find elsewhere.
1120: There's a part on your album that we love and it's the ‘Piano Trailer Melody 4.’ Was it meant as an interlude?
RF: No, I wanted to put a piano piece on there. I really wanted to just have something there that was different from the other parts. I wanted to see if it would fly. I'm a big Harold Budd fan, especially stuff he did with John Fox and some of the stuff he did with Brian Eno. And that's why I started playing piano, because of him. I mean, I played it as a kid, but I picked it up again because of him.
1120: Why we asked whether ‘Piano Trailer’ was an interlude is because when we listen to the album, it seems like a dividing line — like the songs that follow the ‘Piano Trailer’ all seem to be more trip-hop than the songs before it. They take on a Portishead-feel.
RF: Yeah. There is a definite separation. The first half was that intense row. I wanted to put the strongest songs at the beginning of the album. Well, not strongest, but the ones that felt like they had the most punch. It seemed like a good spot to put the piano part where it is. After that, songs like ‘Moments in the Sun’ or ‘Winter Street,’ or ‘Army of Me,’ have a little bit more of a trip-like feel, like you said, which is nice that that came through.
1120: That brings up our next question. ‘Army of Me’ — You did a song last year by the same name that was completely different. You also worked that phrase as a lyric into ‘Moments in the Sun.’ Given that you have returned to that phrase a few times now, is there some kind of concept or theme that you are getting at with that?
RF: This goes all the way back to the 2000’s when I made this song. So, I was playing with Angel Rivera (Abandoned Trains, The Urban Achievers). We stopped playing together. He went on with the band Viva Noir. And then I started Dotsun Moon. I always thought ‘Army of Me’ (a song by Bjork) was such a great phrase, but I wanted to use it in a different way, in a different genre. I don't want to tell anybody what to think about when they're listening to it, but, I mean, it's just about a situation where you're trying to be yourself and, you know, you're just being bombarded but you’re trying to stay true to yourself.
1120: Is there a meaning to the album's name, 'Tiger'?
RF: Yeah, I was like, ‘what could I name this album?’ And then I thought of how Echo & the Bunnymen had ‘Crocodiles’ and ‘Porcupine,’ and I'm like, well, then how about ‘Tiger?’ For all we know, they put about as much thought into the names of those albums as I did. I mean, the Bunnymen have the song ‘Crocodiles,’ but still, it's just something to let your mind wonder about. And then, of course, the woman on the cover of ‘Tiger’ has ‘Tiger Lilies’ too. So, it just seemed appropriate.
1120: Thanks so much for speaking with us. Before we wrap up, is there anything else you want to add that we haven’t covered?
RF: Just, if I may… please, if you listen to the album, share it with someone you think might like it because it’s all about word of mouth. Word of mouth is more valuable than anything. It’s more valuable than commercials or placement or interviews or anything. So please, spread the word.
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