I’m Jay, a singer-songwriter based in Denver, CO and this is my band Deth Rali
✨ Deth Rali makes fantasy-inspired synth-pop music re: sci-fi movies, breakups, and we love SYNTHS 🎹
✨ You might say it’s somewhere between a rock opera & cult documentary
✨ But you clicked something about a free CD…
✨ so let’s address why you’re here….shall we? 💿
GET A FREE SIGNED COPY of our new album ⬇️
here’s what’s inside:
✅ AN AUTOGRAPHED RUBY’S CASTLE CD
✅ DIGITAL ALBUM DOWNLOAD
✅ A HAND-ILLUSTRATED DETH RALI STICKER
just cover the shipping & handling USD $6 📦
WHO IS DETH RALI?
(click to play the song while u scroll)
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💬 I’ll start by giving you a very quick gist of the album
💬 Then we can get *vulnerable* about our band story afterward…
💬 The [FREE CD] in question is our new album “Ruby’s Castle Island” – a fantasy epic we’ve spent the last 1.5 years writing and producing from DETH RALI HQ in Denver 🎧
💬 This album tells the story of Ruby, a little girl who leaves a privileged life to go find adventure. Classic right?
💬 Our goal was to make a modern rock opera for fantasy nerds who love synthesizers
💬 “Ruby” is the 2nd album by Deth Rali and marks a crazy collaboration between some of my best friends, my partner & Distant Planet label co-founder Hanna who did the design work, and my daughter “J” who plays the young Ruby
💬 If you haven’t seen the Ruby’s Castle Island Music Video yet, definitely go check it out after you finish up here.
💬 This record is an alternate universe to explore and lose yourself for 40 minutes. ‘Ruby’ is unapologetically grand and somehow weaves together all my influences in shoegaze, synth-pop, darkwave, and anime. As you can see, we’re as nerdy as they come…
But who are you... REALLY?
Jay Maike (me) I’m a songwriter, producer, and music educator. I’ve been making music for the last 20 years since I was an awkward yearning teenager. I’ve been a single dad and working artist living in Denver over the last decade. Since 2019 I’ve also been a music production instructor and recording engineer at Colorado College. Almost a year ago I stepped down from that position to focus full-time on writing music, world-building, and sharing this music with the world.
Nathan Rodriguez is our veteran drummer born & raised in Colorado Springs and all-around good dude known across the scene for his insane chops, and post-punk style of drums. He knows virtually everything about Dragon Ball Z and has been playing with Deth Rali since our first show.
Hanna Williams is our creative director & designer. She’s the visionary behind Distant Planet and has helped develop the visual look of Deth Rali from the ground up by designing all the single covers, merch, and even costumes for our music videos and photoshoots.
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Ruby's Castle Island:
The Story
⛫ I got the idea for this album after watching movies like Spirited Away, Kiki’s Delivery Service, and the Japanese Horror movie HOUSE
⛫ I kept noticing how the main characters are often children.
⛫ They’re movies that, even if you aren’t following the story, have such a distinguishable FEELING. A strong vibe…
⛫ They leave so much room for you to just inhabit the film.
⛫ Sometimes a shot will have zero intention aside from grass blowing in a field. You feel like you’re there.
⛫ These small moments are what world-building is about.
⛫ But the truth is – I always try to write music that works as a larger narrative, but equally as a bite-size pop song for people who aren’t invested and just want something to rock along with in any moment.
⛫ Like the story of Siddhartha, Ruby leaves her sheltered life behind the Castle walls to discover a cast of crazy characters…
⛫ the bashful Red Face, the Sleepytime Jester, the evil Aldebaran, and finally the seductive Lady Dowager who convinces Ruby to join her cult after she finds a cryptic Video on the internet.
⛫ Has Ruby made a mistake in leaving her comfy world behind or will she prevail?
⛫ Ruby’s Castle Island is a story told over 12 songs, 5 music videos, 1 book, and a live show you HAVE to see!
⛫ Finally, life-long love of 80’s darkwave goth, shoegaze music led me to buying a vintage Juno 106 synth from the early 80’s – the rest was history!
⚠️ If you’ve made it this far… that’s enough deliberating!
✅ You owe it to yourself to check out “Ruby’s Castle Island”.
If you like the story, you can also check out the RUBY LYRIC + PHOTO COMPANION BOOK!
✨ Click below to get your copy ✨
