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D-A-D “Speed of Darkness”
D-A-D “Speed of Darkness”
By Colonel Angus
This one is a blast from the past. I remember seeing advertisements and reviews from this Danish rock outfit in the pages of Kerrang! and R.A.W. magazine. Seeing the glowing reviews made me go search out their “No Fuel Left for the Pilgrims” album which I found at a local record store. I’m going to be 100% honest here, I was quite baffled as to what all the fuss was about. They had a cool AEROSMITH vibe about them but at that time, we had AEROSMITH still recording and touring. I played that record a number of times hoping that something would stick and nothing really ever connected. It wasn’t bad, just not what I was hoping for at the time. Fast forward 35 years and “Speed of Darkness” comes across my virtual desk and faced with this bunch again. Always wanting to give things a fair shake, I turned off my phone, grabbed a cool drink, and listened to the complete album from start to finish. And when I say “listened”, I mean, I sat there and really absorbed the music.
I don’t know if I am listening to D-A-D with more mature ears or if they managed to put out a cranking disk but “Speed of Darkness” is a varied affair of mostly memorable tunes. The tracks that I think work best are the moody “The Ghost” and 90’s rock sounding “Crazy Wings”. Both have a similar sound that shows off their unique brand or rock. That AEROSMITH vibe comes full on during opener “God Prays to Man” and “Live by Fire”. Those are the only songs that I really get that AEROSMITH influence which I feel is a good thing. They definitely pull inspiration from other artists but in doing so, they have created a sound of their own. Like I mentioned earlier, I really only had one album from their history to compare “Speed of Darkness” but I feel that this disk is much better than what my memory currently serves up.
There are other moments that require mentioning on this record. The sleazy swagger of “1st, 2nd & 3rd” is infectious right from the first chord. The guys are able to write big choruses and then they sneak in a 2000s sounding track that strums along with a laid-back vibe. “Head Over Heels” is just a lazy cool breeze of a song that invokes a more modern rock sound while still rooted in the 80s. I will admit that towards the end of the disk, the quality dips a little for me with “Automatic Survival” and “Waiting Is the Way” not quite hitting the mark that the previous material set. Although, D-A-D finish off strong with “I’m Still Here” which again shows off more of their sound. It’s a somber-ish tune that like “Head Over Heels” has a more laid back feel. I often go back and forth as to what the perfect way to finish off a record is but it is one of those things that upon hearing the song, you just know. “I’m Still Here” is the perfect way to cap off a very enjoyable record.
It must be mentioned that it is quite impressive that the band is basically the same aside from the newest member, drummer Laust Sonne who has put in a quarter of a century with the other guys. Brothers Jesper and Jacob Binzer still provide all the guitars and vocals while Stig Pedersen lays down the bottom end on bass. I don’t know if my tastes have changed or if D-A-D changed but I quite like “Speed of Darkness”. It is not a perfect album but there is much to like and it has given me pause in thinking I may have not given them enough of a chance. My homework now will be to check out some of their other releases to see if anything sticks. If you’re a fan, you probably will already be onboard but for those new to D-A-D, this is a good place to start.
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