Photo: James Hammick
Phoenix, Arizona-based indie folk-rock duo Dorsten, aka brother and sister Alex and Sophie Dorsten, introduces their innovative cover of Alice Cooper’s 1976 song, “I Never Cry.”
Sophie explains, “We were kind of thinking, ‘What would be a cool song from Alice Cooper and Dick Wagner that they wrote together?'” Sophie says. “And I just thought we could do something interesting to it. Alex and I heard the song, and we were like, ‘This could be cool. We could mix some cool new elements into this.'”
She continues, “I see how much Alice does for our community and for young artists in Arizona. Dick Wagner was a huge part of our manager, Warren Wyatt’s life, and we thought it would be cool to do a cover of a song they wrote together.”
The connection goes deeper, with Sophie working at Cooper’s Solid Rock teen center, where she gives vocal lessons and teaches a songwriting class. While brother Alex has been a judge for Alice Cooper’s ‘Proof is in the Pudding’ competition, the most well-known music and dance competition in Arizona.
Since the 2020 release of “Sea Salt,” Dorsten has dropped a series of excellent singles, amassing more than 200,000 streams on Spotify. “I Never Cry” is the first of five singles Dorsten will be releasing throughout 2023, a slate that includes their next song, the Americana-flavored “To the River.”
In March 2022, Sophie and Alex had the opportunity to travel to London to record at both RAK Studios and the legendary Abbey Road Studios, Studio Two, and perform at venues in the London area. They will be releasing an EP of tracks recorded at those Abbey Road sessions later this year.
Dorsten – “I Never Cry”
Along with winning numerous awards for their artistry, Dorsten’s music receives international airplay, including Radio TFSC, Radio WigWam, Heart of Indie, OrangeHat Radio, and Pluto Radio, as well as the local stations KWSS 93.9 and azlive.com.
Dorsten’s upcoming performances include Mesa Music Festival (main stage) on April 15, and The Electric Jane in Nashville, on April 25.
“I Never Cry” opens on dark, plucking tones, like dead leaves dripping down, followed by the entry of Sophie’s haunting, moody voice. Emerging strings imbue the tune with aching tremors as the rumbling, syncopated rhythm adds to the shadowy harmonic essence.
On the chorus, Sophie’s vocals take on Medusa-like ethereal timbres, infusing the lyrics with desolate surfaces.
At once elegant and visceral, with “I Never Cry,” Dorsten generates a spellbinding struggle between inner and outer passions.
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