Brotherhood Between Albums, Not Siblings, Makes All This Music Fun

Last Dinosaurs have a sound that’s just too difficult not to fall in love with. They tread this careful ground between the areas of teen angst and the boredom of adulthood, both enhancing and highlighting the strains which come when walking through each of those worlds, and the band does so rather magnificently. The reliability with which they manage to get across to listeners is undeniable, and their overall effect is nothing but what’s arguably one of the most flavorful in the entire world of music today. 

At the beginning of April, Last Dinosaurs released a five-song EP called KYO, the title of which could be a humble tipping of the hat to Kyoto, Japan, a place that remains a cultural hub in the country even to this day. As Sean and Lachlan Caskey, the duo of rockstars who regularly provide their vocals to all songs the band creates, are brothers of Japanese descent, the connection to that old city might not be a completely far-fetched one. The EP, it would be prudent to mention, seems to be a companion, or even sequel, of sorts to the band’s fifth album, RYU, which they dropped prior to the end of 2023. 

RYU is an exploration of art in art, even though classifying it that way could be confusing. Last Dinosaurs, on the album’s first track, for example, discuss the overlap between artists as timelessly influential as Van Gogh and Elton John, and they put themselves in those conversations. They urge listeners, just as they seemingly urge an off-song muse, to stay with them through the nights and not take some flight, one that’ll probably mean perpetual separation. 

Perhaps what best captures the essence of RYU, however, is the song “Slow,” a nicely, fittingly enough, slow, as well as steady, take on a mood. In other words, if one were seeking to hear RYU in one way, they wouldn’t have to listen past this track. It’s a smart take on the moodiness of grunge, and through its lyrics, Last Dinosaurs reveal how well aware they are of the ugliness of existence, something they’re quite talented at, for better or worse, considering their other works. Caskey sings, “In this eccentric paradise, / I hope your conscience will suffice,” his awareness shining. Beyond the lyrical content of the song, here, too, is the brilliant inclusion of this screeching guitar that shockingly sounds just like what the roar of a dinosaur of any size or shape must’ve sounded like. 

On KYO, Last Dinosaurs do plenty more exploring of matters as big as those such as life itself. This colossal EP isn’t minor child’s play, or this immature spin on things already widely discussed by, say, politicians; rather, it’s this subliminally poetic commentary on what society is now as it exists in the twenty-first century. Where “Yin and Yang” on RYU is all whistling and guitars, soothing as those two together are, and fun, everything on KYO is a move away from the normal. 

Last Dinosaurs come out entirely upbeat and joyful with KYO’s beginner, “Keys To Your Civic.” Assuming that they’re speaking of a Honda Civic in the title, they bring beauty to things mostly mundane. They even compliment themselves, a lyric going, “Feels good in a subtle way,” and that’s exactly how the whole of both of these releases feel, especially when they’re viewed as one combined thing. The synths present add to the on-point lyrics all about time and journeys. Drums do their drumming properly. The band is made up of experts, experts who with so much ease are so honest and open about what may or may not be real experiences through which they’ve gone. Skilled at managing feelings and creating pictures for their listeners, Last Dinosaurs don’t fail at making the idea of relatability something of a friend to them, and so it reigns supreme.  

“N.P.D,” for all audiences know, could be what started as a conversation in the form of music. It’s informal and discussion-based, when looking at its lyrics. The drums are, once again, great, and so groovy, so funky. The multiple breaks part of the track contain elemental sections of some bits of the Friday Night Lights—the 2004 flick about high-school football—score. Then there’s this strange almost-interview bit where this adolescent boy can be heard asking someone for their opinion on the Beach Boys. Is he attempting to insinuate that Last Dinosaurs are trying to be like them? Not necessarily. Nevertheless, what could be imagined at the end of this song is what one would likely hear if some alien mothership were to abduct, or beam up, somebody via a tractor-beam. And Caskey’s vocals are holy, as if he recorded this within a church. 

The thing about KYO and RYU is that they’re both just so human. They include tracks on which Last Dinosaurs sing honestly about trials and tribulations, never celebrating or lamenting anything over the other. In their music, there’s no hesitation, no struggle; instead, they speak unapologetically about the way things go, about common emotions, and the results should leave lasting impacts on listeners of all distinctions.