Instrumentals Volume 1 - 2025 Danish Crunchy Frog label petrol coloured 17-track LP

Necessity is the mother of invention! D/troit have always been making instrumentals -- referred to by the band as 'struts' -- and have long toyed with the idea of an album in this vein. With singer Toke Bo’s temporary relocation to Athens, the time was right. The album reflects an open and exploratory approach, blending their signature retro soul sound with influences old and new.

From start to finish, the new recordings maintain D/troit’s tight grooves and rich arrangements while leaning into something altogether more playful and eclectic - a fresh take on their music. At times, it sounds like the exotica-tinged soundtrack for a 70’s heist movie (check Alarm, the album’s first single). Elsewhere, the band sounds equal parts twilit beach bar and Addams Family party as on Ruckenbiel, inspired by D/troit’s bizarre quest for the vibraphonette that anchors the tune. Bought from a paranoid German tourist over many weeks of cryptic messages on multiple encrypted platforms, the final handoff was supposed to take place on a cruise ship, but turned into an old woman, who without speaking a word, passed the band a note with the name “Ruckenbiel” and a phone number scribbled on it. That was only the beginning of a three-part story we’ve still only heard two-thirds of, but suffice it to say; the surreal ordeal demanded to be put to music!

On D/50, the band play with bossa, full of kitsch, cuica, claves, and organ flourishes, while Hernandez invokes a Morricone-inspired Mexican stand-off. The one non-instrumental on this instrumental album, Pick It Up (Lay It Down) features a “guest” appearance from D/troit leadsinger Toke Bo on a Meters and James Brown-esque funky banger, raw, ready and dance-inducing, and here a classic D/troit sound is right at home in the mixed bag of the record.

Tracklisting:

Side 1:

1.    Ruckenbiel
2.    Alarm
3.    ph 942-SOUL
4.    Pick It Up (Lay It Down)
5.    D/50
6.    Supercar Sigla
7.    Høns
8.    Il Matino
9.    Hernandez

Side 2:
1.    Love Is Where You Find It
2.    Spell It
3.    Running on the Spot
4.    The 2.30 am Get Down
5.    El Bimbo
6.    Arribada
7.    Mjello
8.    Hernandez Reprise