Ductape: "You cannot be heard if you don’t have shows!"

Although they’ve been around for a relatively short time - being a quarantine-era band like many others - our neighbors Çağla and Furkan formed the project Ductape (often stylized as Dxctape), initially based in Istanbul and later in Ankara. Amid the rapid growth of the post-punk revival scene across Europe, Ductape deliver a sound that is dark, electronic, and above all, intensely danceable.

Very recently, they gifted us their wonderful record "Echo Drama," yet the duo shows no sign of slowing down. Their next work, titled "Faded Flowers," is already on the way and is expected to be released in early 2026. Ductape’s dark romanticism - both aesthetically and emotionally - invites you to lose yourself in their world, where every problem and every obstacle becomes a good excuse to let your body drift away in some dimly lit club and "dance" your troubles away.

Seemingly tireless, Ductape are not only constantly writing new music but also in a state of perpetual touring. This year finds them on the road once again, with an upcoming massive tour kicking off in Europe, flying to Latin America, and returning the following year to European soil. With the tour’s first stop in Athens, at Aux Club on November 1st, the opportunity was perfect for a chat with Çağla Güleray, one half of the band. Below, we talk about their recent work, their live shows, the post-punk reality in Europe and Turkey, and much more!

Hello and welcome to Rocking.gr! How are you?

Hi, hi! We are fine, thank you!

Let’s introduce you to people that might not have heard you yet - who are Ductape, and why choose the name Ductape - styled with an "x" instead of a "u"?

It’s styled with x actually, ‘cause X is a cooler letter than U :) We chose the name Ductape because you use it to fix broken things, to hold things together but they never become the same again.

We are finding you a little bit before you initiate a massive tour starting from Europe, going to Latin America, expanding to more Europe for 2026. Are you excited?

This year we’ve been on an intense, never-ending tour, so we’re well trained but the excitement never fades. The idea of flying every morning makes the Latin America tour a bit intimidating, but we’re sure it’s going to be amazing. We’re also extra curious about next year, since we’ll be going to places we’ve never been before.

You are starting the tour from Athens, Greece, and we will be more than happy to have you back. Last time you were here, you were playing with Drab Majesty. What were your impressions of the Greek audience back then?

Our first time in Greece was in 2022 when we played with Sixth June in Athens and Thessaloniki. Greek audience is very welcoming. They have a great passion about music and you can see that in their eyes.

What are you expecting from us and what we should expect from you as headliners now?

We’ve been seeing the Greek scene grow rapidly for a while now. It’s been about two years since our last visit, and we’re excited to witness this growth up close. Of course, we’ve also grown during that time, we have released a new album and new songs and since this will be our own show, we’ll be playing a longer setlist.

The one thing that really amazed me at that time, was your stage presence. You somehow manage to balance dancing, singing and playing your instruments like it’s no big deal. What is the importance of your stage presence to you?

Our main goal is to first feel the energy and emotion of the songs ourselves, and then make the audience feel it too. We make albums and songs, but the stage is the only place where you can truly connect with people eye to eye. We want to draw everyone who comes to the show into our own world, which is why we try to express all our emotions as intensely as possible on stage.

Do you ever find challenges and/or benefits while touring/ on stage, being only the two of you in the band?

Of course, we do face challenges. Handling all the instruments and merch as just two people can be tough. Sometimes we want to add new elements to our show, but unfortunately, being only two can be quite limiting.

"The term Echo Drama means a dramatic situation that mirrors a past occurrence, referencing events within a cycle

Let’s dive back to the music though. Last year, you released your third album, "Echo Drama". What is the main focus of the album and why did you pin point the "drama"? How has the response been so far?

The term Echo Drama can’t really be broken down into separate words, it has a meaning of its own as a whole. It means a dramatic situation that mirrors a past occurrence, referencing events within a cycle. It represents a concentration of our past releases, concert’s attitude, it echoes our past. We believe we’ve made significant progress with this album. We’ve received incredibly positive feedback, and we’re already on the third pressing of the vinyl. We can say it’s been one of our turning points.

However, you have already a new album ready, called "Faded Flowers" and we’ve had the chance to listen to your single "Fine". What is the inspiration behind the new album?

Even though we can’t point to something specific, all the emotions and experiences we’ve gone through over the past year have shaped the emotional pool of the new album. When we make songs, we always focus on whatever we’re feeling and thinking in that moment. So in a way, we could say it’s a bit like a diary.

"We think that people can be sad and dance on their emotions at the same time

Your music, although very obviously leaning towards post-punk and darkwave, is heavily based on tunes and songs that one can dance to. Based both on that and your stage presence, what inspires you to combine darkness with dance?

It’s hard to explain but I guess we think that people can be sad and dance on their emotions at the same time. Our live show experiences have also been one of the main things that shaped this.

After She Past Away’s big success, post-punk seems to have emerged with a strong presence in Turkey. How do you view the scene in your country?

They resonated strongly, especially with the younger audience and became a source of inspiration for new bands. We can say the scene here is growing.

You also released a song together last year, "Ölüm Günüm". How did that feature become reality?

Very spontaneous. When we made the song we could hear Volkan’s voice in our heads so we asked them and they loved the idea and the song.

Are there any local artists that you would advise people to check out, coming for Turkey?

There are many new bands trying to develop themselves, but there aren’t many we like enough to actually recommend.

"As much as we love the idea of living in a big city we needed a mental space so Ankara was the perfect match

You chose to move your base from Istanbul to Ankara. Was that decision related to the band or circumstantial? Has it helped you or made things more complicated for Ductape?

We chose to move Ankara because I (Çağla) lived in Istanbul my whole life and living there started to become overwhelming for both of us. As much as we love the idea of living in a big city we needed a mental space so Ankara was the perfect match since it is also where Furkan is originally from. The only complication is that mostly there are no direct flights to other places.

Post-punk and all of its many faces has become very popular the past few years and I would consider you as a very bright example of what this music can offer. Were you inspired to begin the band because of the sound getting more popular, or it just so happened?

When we first started forming Ductape, we didn’t plan on making music in a certain genre. We hear a lot of people start doing Post-punk because it is getting popular but absolutely not in our case. Ductape is simply a mixture of what we love to listen as individuals, a combination of our music taste.

What were your main inspirations for Ductape - it might be musicians or other type or artists or important figures as well.

Furkan and I have different inspirations mostly. He is inspired by Birthday Party, Siouxie and the Banshees, Joy Division. I am inspired by Bosch, Bauhaus art.

We talked before about music in your country, and there is also a lot happening there but also in the general Eurasian area of the Balkans and Russia and Turkey. A lot of bands choose to sing in their own language when we speak about post-punk territory. How did you decide on working with combined English and Turkish on your songs?

When we make the song the melody tells us which language is it gonna be. It’s a feeling we get from the vibe of the song.

"It’s natural that what you express reflects the place you live and the environment you grew up in

Do you feel like our part of the map has a special connection with darkness and thus many talented bands come from this area?

The influence of culture is of course, undeniable. Art is a form of expression. It’s natural that what you express reflects the place you live and the environment you grew up in. Can’t comment on the talented part, but it can be said that it’s more original-unique.

"It’s getting harder to tour each year now. But one thing is certain, you cannot be heard if you don’t have shows

Being a rather new band, how do you view things in the music industry today? Many comment on touring becoming more expensive and difficult, while others struggly to find identity amongst the millions of choices the internet and streaming offers regarding new music. How did Ductape found their way?

As a band that formed just before the Pandemic, we can say that it was not easy to grow without touring. We tried our best to find perfect spots that we can still have shows and help spread our name. We ofcourse don’t know how touring was like before that but it was expected to become harder and more expensive. We can clearly see that it’s getting harder each year now. But one thing is certain, you cannot be heard if you don’t have shows. As you said, there are millions of music online now. Hard to discover something new and good so people tend to keep listening what they already know. We didn’t plan on anything but always working hard to keep doing what we love and it pays off.

Thank you so much for your time! Please close the interview with anything you want to communicate to your audience and our readers, and see you soon in Athens!

Thank you for having us! It’s gonna be a blazing night and we are looking forward to it!