Vibes

Lonely Ride

Amsterdam natives Maarten Smeets and Lars Dales, aka Dam Swindle, unveil their third long-player with the release of a new track, the first to be shared from the upcoming album, ‘Open’ - out on 30 May 2025 via Heist Recordings.

The new album sees the acclaimed duo dive far beyond the deep sonic waters they’re most known for, exploring lower tempos, synthwave, hip-house, and ambient across fourteen tracks. With a gestation period that traces back several years, ‘Open’ is their most intimate and personal body of work thus far, birthed during a time of self-reflection away from touring and personal transformation as individuals.

“We felt the need to tell a very personal story through our music as a translation of our personal development in the past years. We also wanted to make music without a specific goal in mind; We simply wanted to create. By taking away the grid of dance music and any expectations of what a Dam Swindle song should sound like, the creativity started to flow naturally with songs in many different styles and tempos. The result is an album that feels refreshing and uplifting and still very much true to the heart and soul of our sound.” - Dam Swindle, January 2025.

While the trademark Dam Swindle four-to-the-floor beats are still ever-present on tracks like ‘The Present Is Always Perfect’, ‘I Need You’, and ‘Is This Love?’, it’s the gentle waves of synths on opener ‘Home’, the contemplative piano chords of ‘Bloom’ featuring Joep Beving, and the lo-fi ambience of ‘It’s Okay, I Can Wait’ that showcase a melancholic, ethereal sensibility previously uncharted by the duo. Collaborations with vocalists such as NYC’s Haile Supreme on ‘Not Enough’ and Neo-soul singer Faye Meana on ‘Girl’ expertly find room in between the dancefloor and home listening sessions, and a clear standout on the LP is the title cut where message-heavy rapped vocals from UK artist Samson ebb and flow amongst iridescent grooves.

Under the helm of Maarten and Lars’ adept A&R, their Heist imprint has become a beloved home for house heads of both schools old and new, platforming some of dance music’s biggest names from Cinthie to DJ Sneak as well as the musical dawnings of artists such as Kassian and Makèz. The Dam Swindle alias has achieved house music royalty-like status across a storied 15-year career that includes two critically lauded full-lengths, collaborations with the likes of Tom Misch and Kerri Chandler, and a globetrotting touring schedule. This album stands as their most profoundly personal work of art to date, and they can’t wait to share it with you.


Open

Buy here!

Dam Swindle - Not enough feat. Haile Supreme

Yeah True is an eclectic alternative pop duo based in Berlin. Comprised of vocalist/multi instrumentalist/producer Owen Ross (Oh_When) and producer/DJ/visual artist Oscar Bernal, the duo draw from a wide range of influences, sonically and beyond. While Ross was honing his craft touring as a guitarist and writing/producing in New York (collaborators include Lucius, The Who, DJ Amir, Murkage Dave, Jaykae, and more) Bernal was building his profile as an international DJ playing at such festivals as Garbicz, Waking Life, and Meadows In The Mountain and internationally renown clubs Club der Visionaere (Berlin), Kaiku (Helsinki) Papaya Playa Project (Mexico/Tulum) and more. The duo synthesize musicality with dancefloor sensibility creating gritty, playful, pop songs centered around Owen Ross’ smooth baritone. Their debut Album Another Stolen Bike is available on all platforms via Haunt Records.

Oh_when & Yeah True ‘Another Stolen Bike’
All music written by: Owen Ross and Oscar Bernal
Lyrics by: Owen Ross
Produced by: Owen Ross
Mixed by: Henning Grambow
Mastered by: Mat Leffler-Schulman
Album artwork by: Amanda Arrou-tea

Maybe I'm Wrong Again

Jack Jackson

Related tracks