Department Of Eagles

Department Of Eagles are a pair of young men who conduct their operations from Brooklyn, NYC. Once-roommates and college pals Daniel Rossen (vocals and guitars) and Fred Nicolaus (beats and samples) are the dynamic duo and have been pouring together ideas for years now. This debut was written when the fellers were teenagers and then produced by Fred’s pal’s dad Jeff Saltzman in his studio in Berkeley, California. Jeff is now slightly famous for having produced The Killers’ Hot Fuss album and will sooner or later produce the latest Morrisey record.

‘About halfway through the first year at college, Dan played me a few beats he had made in high school. I started making my own little tracks for fun, and after I had three or four, I decided it would be a fun project to make an album of these things. It pretty much went from there’. Before that, their predilection for the bands that’ve flavoured all our formative tastes – Green Day, Nirvana et al – schooled them well in the art of song. That Fred and Dan’s seminal musical years have coincided to such a degree only helps further the dynamic of Team Eagles, each partner adding something different to the pot.

Their music extrapolates ideas from in-jokes; cryptic phrases becoming seeds of inspiration for their work. Fred’s optimistically low-key about the future of the band, but seems keen to get into the swing of being an international genre-straddling music hero even if ‘the small amount of attention we’ve gotten has been somewhat crazy’. For example ‘Some guy just emailed me the other day, he wants me to DJ his pig roast. As payment, he’s offering cake, beer, and free roast pig’. Just don’t let that get out to any venue managers or they’ll be greeted by a tea-party rather than a rider.