Rating: ****
I'll be honest with you guys; I don't know much about Finnish punk rock. In fact, I had to google "Finnish punk rock" to even see if I've ever heard of anybody before (PKN seems cool, BTW). That said, I'm more than willing to listen to the eff out of and review the latest from Finnish punk rock band Daggerplay. It's called "Subterranean Reality" and I'll be damned if by the looks of the song titles, I'm not intrigued.
Song titles are a funny thing. They give you a glimpse of what you might hear, but you can never be really sure. Never judge a book by it's cover and all that. The first time I saw "Norwegian Wood" I never could have imagined what I'd be in for. Actually, that's a bad example. "Norwegian Wood" sounds exactly like you'd think by the song title. I'm bad at this.
I'm gonna kick the tires on "Subterranean Reality" and see what we come up with. Join me on the journey, will you?
Watch the audio video for "Red Sky" on Youtube below:
"Red Sky" beats the door down with riff-heavy punk. A real melter of an opener. "Cruel Wind Blowing" reminds me of Bad Religion in the best way possible. Melodic while remaining loud and unforgiving. Solid. "Don't Give Up" has a poppier feel and didn't rock me like the first two. That's okay. "Black River" is a good album track, and "Girl, It's Gonna Get Better Or Just Worse" is a mid-tempo banger. Nothing mind-blowing, but really good pop-punk. "Days Like These" shreds and will kill the Warped Tour crowd. "Four Walls" and "Killbrun Highroad" both continue the theme of catchy and melodic punk. These guys live by their influences without being a copycat act. "Same Old, Same Old" is traditional sing-along punk at it's finest. "NW2" didn't do much for me. It's not bad, it's just kinda sames-y at this point in the album. "One Mile Town" might be my favorite tune on the record. Really fun. "Afterlife" is decent but "Ghosts" is amazing. Really great pop song that has single written all over it. The album ends with "Sinister Blues" and it's sooooo different than the rest of the LP. Slower-paced and as bluesy as the title would suggest. Great change-of-pace right at the end.
More than anything, this album is fun. It will take you back to the 80's-era of kickass, slam-dancing, punk rock fury. I highly recommend it to fans of the genre. That said, even non-punkers should find enough on here to enjoy it. Really good stuff.