> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.castleandcloister.co.uk/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Interview with Dead End River - URL: https://www.castleandcloister.co.uk/interview-with-dead-end-river/ - Published: 2026-07-29T09:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-07-29T09:47:49.000Z - Description: From sell-out MCR tributes to Collingwood Day, Dead End River (D.E.R.) show no sign of stopping. I sat down with Anais, Bly and Nesh to discuss their past, present and future. - Author: Katarina Bozic - Tags: City Desk, Arts --- ### **Interviewees:** Bly, Anais, Nesh ### **DER:** Anais (Vocals), Morgan (Guitar), Rowan (Guitar), Bly (Piano), Ollie (Bass), Nesh (Drums). --- ## ***Did you always want to be in a band, and what made you start here in Durham?*** ### **BLY** I have- playing music on your own gets boring. I just sent an audition message out on the Rocksoc group chat, and I got so many responses. We set this up as an MCR tribute band, but now we've realised that we're all kind of too good to limit ourselves to that. ### **ANAIS** The audition for me was like make or break, coming from somewhere where rock music was non-existent. I really wanted to be in a band when I came to Durham. We ended up vibing, and I'm so happy about it. ### **BLY** You were doing so much in that audition. It was so funny. The other guy came in, sung the song, and you were doing all these random-ass vocal runs, just showing off. I was like, girl, you already got the job. ### **NESH** I had just come out of another band back home. A nasty breakup, and I was looking for somewhere new to play in Durham. I think I was playing in one or two other bands, just feeling it out. But then I stumbled upon DER. I kind of fumbled my way through the audition. I was the only one there, so I won by default. --- ## ***It sounds like the band has really brought you together. But what's been the most difficult thing about your musical journey so far?*** ### **BLY** Our guitarist keeps falling in puddles. ### **NESH** You can't say that! ### **ANAIS** As a band we mesh really well. We're very into music, so we don't really conflict on ideas. ### **BLY** Okay, the only difficulty is being in Durham. If we were in any other major city in England, we'd be able to play more than one venue. ### **NESH** Interpersonally, we are oddly friction-free so far. Fingers crossed. --- ## ***So you've already touched on some issues with the Durham music scene, which some people express dissatisfaction with. How do you feel about this? And are there any particularly good things about it?*** ### **NESH** There's not many places to perform. Klute is like a pillar in the community, and Drunken Duck is also really nice. Aside from that there's not really other options. We hope that changes soon. But what’s nice is how close everyone is here, how helpful and communicative the local scene is. Everybody knows everybody, and if you're playing music, you won’t find a shortage of people to talk to or work with. --- ## ***Where do you see the band a year from now? And are there any longer term plans for you?*** ### **BLY** We'd like to still be playing. A year from now, we'll also be in Durham. Hopefully by then we've written, we've recorded, we've released. We're able to go further and get ourselves a bit of a following. All we want to do is just keep going. I think everyone is willing to try their best to keep it together. --- ## ***If you could perform in any venue, where would this be and why?*** ### **BLY** I love the Apollo in Manchester. I've seen so many cool bands there, and I feel like it's the kind of venue we’re suited to. There's so much space and it has a bouncy floor and balconies. ### **ANAIS** I definitely want to perform at a music festival, like Outbreak Festival, because of all the artists that you can meet there. It'd be great for connections and the audience it attracts. --- ## ***So, obviously MCR will be mentioned, but who are your biggest influences and how have they shaped the originals you’re starting to write?*** ### **BLY** Obviously MCR is a big one. They don't really feel like a stadium band, even though they play stadium shows, because everyone's so in on the weirdness and the freak, which is kind of like us. I love Pup as well. It inspires me to write weirder music. That's what most of my influences do. I love weird bands more than anything else, ones you'll see on the bottom of a festival lineup. It inspires me to branch out and that's what I'm trying to do with our originals at the moment. ### **ANAIS** We have a lot of album concepts- we pull influence from pop punk, emo, screamo and rock. ### **NESH** For me, it's loads of 2000s bands alongside more modern ones. I take from a lot of post-hardcore stuff and more modern metal and rock- System of a Down, Deftones. **\[BLY POINTS TO THEIR SYSTEM OF A DOWN SHIRT\]** ### **NESH** A really strange commonality between a lot of the artists I like is that they have their roots in jazz, or genres that you might not expect. Finding that foundation and tracing the history is something that I find really interesting. Icons like Joey Jordison, Danny Carey, Slipknot and Tool, and Avenged Sevenfold as well. Morgan would kill us if we didn’t mention Avenged Sevenfold. ### **BLY** I'd be doing myself a disservice if I didn't mention Ben Folds Five. I wouldn't be in this band had I not learned their songs. That style of piano playing was so alien to me. It's so aggressive, fast and percussive and different to what I was playing at the time. It completely changed the course of my music. --- ## ***Do you have any advice you'd give to students hoping to join or start a band?*** ### **NESH** Just f\*\*\*ing do it. Because even just getting your foot in the door and starting, you're already in the top, whatever, 0.1% of people who do this with their lives. Not many people have the courage, whether or not you even end up getting on stage. On some level, it doesn't matter how well you can play as long as you're willing to work with it and be open and try new things. ### **BLY** Just come along, meet people, try it out. If a band doesn't work out, that's okay. And if it does, like Dead End River did, you will have some of the most fun of your entire life. ### **ANAIS** Your time here is literally so short. I thought it was going to be a long time, but already one year's passed. ### **BLY** And going to gigs is important- you can't join the scene unless you support the scene. Otherwise it's gone, you know? You've got to support every single band. And in the first few weeks, all people expect you to play is like Creep, Valerie, stuff like that. So make sure you know those songs. ### **NESH** How long have I been playing music? It's probably getting close to a decade. At the start, I didn't know anything. I made a million different mistakes. And if you just want to talk to somebody, who's done it and can give you a slice of their pie in terms of experience, that's completely fine to do. --- ## ***Do you have anything else you'd like to say to the audience or readers of this article?*** ### **BLY** We are not just a My Chem cover band. We swear. ### **NESH** We promise. We have big plans, genre flips, all sorts of music that we're going to push out. It's just a beautiful local scene. Even if it's small, there are people who are dedicated and who clearly love what they're doing. So it's a scene that we hope to grow and work with for years to come. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/10/c3/10c3a558-e975-4210-8566-55248bcfbb5d/content/images/2026/07/image-26.png) --- *Thank you for reading Castle & Cloister. To stay up-to-date, you can subscribe for free and follow our pages on* [*Instagram*](http://instagram.com/castleandcloister?ref=castleandcloister.co.uk) *and* [*LinkedIn*](https://www.linkedin.com/company/castle-cloister/?ref=castleandcloister.co.uk)*.*