YEV Kassem might have begun life as Noah Church's solo side project, but it's grown to become the Newcastle singer-songwriter's top musical priority.
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Last Friday the dave the band frontman released the second Yev Kassem album, Bright Death.
The album's minimalist electronic and synth sound presents a major sonic shift from Yev Kassem's 2020 debut Joy Is A House Made Of Tears and dave's '90s indie-rock.
"It's mostly the sounds and the instruments I've used to make it," Church said. "The songwriting and process was all the same, songs written with my guitar.
"But I've never recorded an album like that before, so sonically it's pretty different."
Bright Death was self-recorded at Church's Merewether home in January 2021 partly using equipment he'd borrowed from his younger brother, Romy, better known as experimental electronic artist e4444e.
"I remember the first song I did, I sent it to Romy and he said it sounded like Linkin Park, so I scrapped that," Church laughed.
"Then one day it just clicked and that was the song Water."
In spring Yev Kassem will undertake an east coast tour, which includes a launch show at the Stag & Hunter Hotel on October 29.
Dave the band have self-recorded their follow-up to 2020's Slob Stories, but Church said the album is on the backburner until after Yev Kassem's Bright Death tour is complete.
"I've been keen to give the Yev thing a go without it feeling like a side project and not the main thing," he said.
"It's been the first time I've been able to focus on this, which is nice."
While dave remain active, Church said Yev Kassem provided a greater creative outlet.
"When I think about the one thing I really like doing and why I do everything else, it's because I love writing songs on the guitar and playing them," he said.
"Since I've been doing the Yev thing I've been able to play nice shows with just my guitar and trying to sing.
"I love doing those dave shows, they're so much fun. But I'm not ruining my throat by screaming and stuffing up my ears, though they ring all the time."
