Ferguson Alternative Band Releases New EP

The Miami alternative music scene, while quaint in comparison to other cities, has steadily grown in popularity, with Kendall at its core. Bands like Palomino Blond, Mahogany Purple and The Polar Boys are Kendall-based bands that have gained a loyal fanbase from playing in local venues and promoting their music on social media.

One promising band that has recently debuted on the Kendall scene is Deux Visages, composed of four Ferguson students, 3 of which graduated in the class of 2019. Meaning two-faced in French, Deux Visages was formed when Antoine Lappin wanted to start making music and reached out to some talented people at Ferguson to start a band. On November 9th of last year, the group was officially formed with Daphney Hanono as the lead singer, Michael Del Valle as the lead guitarist, Tyler Roberts as the bassist, and Antoine Lappin as the drummer for the band.

In the past few months, Deux Visages released a single and an EP, both of which can be found on Spotify. They were willing to share some insight on the production process.

“The songwriting process really does happen in different ways but for the EP From the Altar, I would usually write the songs at my piano and then practice it with the band,” said Daphney Hanono. “Everyone [puts] their own spin on it. Usually, the songs I come up with by myself is very different from the end product. Other times we’ll just jam in our garage until we find something that we like and record.”

When creating a song, the band starts with chord progressions that Hanono or Del Valle come up with. Next, they start recording the guitar. They plug it into an audio interface and use Logic Pro as their digital audio workstation. Bass follows and is recorded the same way. “The hardest parts come after,” states Michael Del Valle. “We make a little soundproof box for the drums and mic up the drums. After that, we do vocals, usually in a quiet, small room with no sound and pieces of mattress or foam to absorb sound and get a decently clear sound. Finally, we mix and master and try to make it sound good.”

Music inspiration comes in diverse ways for the band, and they all contribute to the process. It’s clear that their music grows along with them. “I recently got a mixer with more channels to start recording better sounding drums,” said Antoine Lappin. “We put in as much effort as we can to try to get it sounding as pro as possible with the little materials we have to work with, and so far, everything from playing to mixing has been done by us.”

The band also shared some insight as to what it is like to be an alternative rock band in Kendall. “I think in terms of limitations, I feel like there are not as many people listening to live bands,” said Tyler Roberts. “[Live bands here] aren’t as big as other cities of comparable size.” The band members also went on to elaborate that their access to venues and studios is limited because the vast majority of them are far away. They have, however, found a supportive community in the scene along with other bands and have found inspiration through them. “Going to local shows really made me want to be in a band and perform,” continued Roberts. “Shoutout SunGhosts, Palomino Blond, and Better than This.”

Deux Visages dropped a new single called “Necromancy” on September 18th and recently released their latest EP called From the Altar. “Our EP, From the Altar, was based on a really tough separation [from] the songs that I wrote,” said Hanono. “I hold it dear to my heart because all the words I wrote for it were very real feelings and these songs reflect me at the time I was going through this. It was hard recording, we could’ve easily scrapped the songs or not have done it but we pushed through the long nights and being in a hot and sweaty garage.”

The single, “Necromancy,” focuses on “[outgrowing] a love” as the person still longs for their affection once again. This song pairs melancholic vocals with a contrasting rhythm that eventually becomes fiercer. Their new EP features “Necromancy” and three other songs. “What Girls Are Made Of” is an upbeat song, “No Sun (No Fun)” has an edge with Del Valle singing throughout, and their title track connects back to the perspective built in “Necromancy”.

With their latest release, they have been able to make their debut on the Kendall scene and are continuing to work on more projects to come in the future. “The latest releases do mean a lot to me because it is the first project we put out as a band and it shows the work we all put in for almost 6 months,” said Lappin. “I do look forward to releasing more songs. To me, success is if the people that got to hear the songs like them and enjoy them and if I had fun playing and recording them.”

Check out Deux Visage’s new EP From the Altar on Spotify and Apple Music!