Those crazy Danes D-A-D celebrated 40 years in the business with a greatest hits album earlier this year, and not ones to rest on their laurels, they return with their 13th studio album, and it’s a double album entitled ‘Speed Of Darkness’.
While the glory days of ‘No Fuel Left For The Pilgrims’ and ‘Riskin It All’ are long gone, the band are still big hitters in their home country and are a phenomenal live band (which I can confirm, after witnessing them blow all the competition away at Hair Metal Heaven at Hull City Hall back in 2017. They have released consistently strong albums with pretty much the original line up (drummer Laust Sonne joined the band 25 years ago), and with 40 songs amassed prior to recording this album, D-A-D show no signs of slowing down just yet.
Opener ‘God Prays To Man’ has an AC/DC riff-heavy groove, vocalist Jesper Binzer’s unmistakable growl to the fore and a great production that separates the instruments to perfection. It’s a slow burner of an opener, but we appear to be back in business. Up next, lead single ‘1st,2nd & 3rd‘ raises the bar and the energy levels and leads to an early highlight in ‘The Ghost’. This is classic D-A-D to my ears. More laid back, with haunting effect-drenched guitars courtesy of Jacob Binzer. The immediate melody takes us back in time to ‘No Fuel’ era D-A-D. It builds nicely to a rousing, passionate chorus that hits in the feels.
I must say the crystal-clear production job from Nick Foss shines in the likes of the slower, melancholy songs. The likes of ‘Head Over Heels’ and the stunning album closer ‘I’m Still Here’ sound massive and overall there is a stadium rock feel to this album, like The Cult somewhere between ‘Electric’ and ‘Sonic Temple’.
There’s great dynamics and loud/quiet moments to the title track. A powerful riff reminiscent of King’s X at their finest, and a cool hook that buries deep in the brain.
Elsewhere on this 14-track affair, the radio friendly ‘Live By Fire’ shines brightly, a pumping fist in the air rocker with killer guitars and an anthemic chorus that instantly hits the spot. ‘Crazy Wings’ is both upbeat and balladic, here that trademark Tarantino-esque guitar tone from ‘Sleeping My Day Away’ rears its beautiful head for the solo, and the angelic backing vocals and acoustic guitars help elevate the song to another plane.
The more I listen, the more momenst jump out. ‘Keep That MF Down’ is a solid classic rocker, that sounds a bit generic at first but grows with repeated listens. ‘Everything Gone’ sounds like Velvet Revolver, which ain’t a bad thing, and ‘Automatic Survival’ is a stand out with solid riffage and a cool swaggering vocal that is slowly becoming a favourite album track for me.
For a rock band celebrating 40 years in the business, D-A-D sound remarkably fresh and invigorated, putting bands half their age to shame. If you thought they were done back in the early 90’s like the majority of their contemporaries, then you were wrong. D-A-D are a musical tour-de-force and ‘Speed Of Darkness’ is a trip from beginning to end.
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Author: Ben Hughes
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