Dining Dead Ascend ON “Heaven FROm the Ceiling”

My impression of Dining Dead, when I heard their first record Medium Rare back in 2021, was that they went out to bars a lot and made for a good modern version of Pavement. Not exactly like Pavement, mind, but a certain casual looseness persisted in their playing that, in my mind, linked them to the rougher older indie rock bands of that era - plus, of course, the dynamic adroitness of Sammy Skidmore’s voice soaring over country- and surf-rock licks. But even in its most raucous moments something felt a little restrained in the material, and the band’s newest single, “Heaven from the Ceiling,”  does a lot to push my initial impression to the side.

It’s not evident at first, starting with Bogie Pieper’s ghost note snare hits and newcomer Zach Alva’s bass leading with a traceable melody. Even when Skidmore’s voice enters, everything’s still at ground level. It’s when the mirage of guitar enters the right channel that the song lifts off the floor, oscillating from a propulsive pre-chorus to a chorus that shoots into the stratosphere. Twinkling arpeggios, backing harmonies, and a supportive scream at its tail end form a firework-like climax that lets the song glide into its distortion-laden aftermath. By its end, it’s hard to remember where the band began, making “Heaven from the Ceiling” an itinerant gem that foretells exciting times for the band.