Dangerface – Stavanger, Norway
For a band near to dropping their next single why are we speaking of Dangerface and the ‘Lights Out’ single now? Well, in a contrasting nutshell to the very reasoning for this, its because the internet is a gargantuan mass. A mass of everything from love, laughter, morons and fake news but importantly the method unto which is currently best to support the underground music scene. So yes, Dangerface and the ‘Lights Out’ single.
Within such a title, it is fair to say that Hardcore Punk is a funny one. A genre whose raw veracity has inspired countless off-shoots and deviates of itself and yet still owns whatever incarnation is on offer. This is entirely where the likes of Dangerface inhabit. Consider the first two albums by Gallows, the raucous Garage-infused Hardcore of The Bronx or Brasher, the melodic-edge of Exploding Head Syndrome and then the hard-edged chaos of Every Tie I Die or The Ghost Of A Thousand and you will arrive somewhere in this rage-inspired cathart-a-thon.
The Big Day Records-dwelling Norwegian five-piece are not afraid to merge inherent, Hardcore rage and its resulting classicism into something new. The band are not afraid of juxtaposing these classic stylistics with Rock n’ Roll flare and melody and this is the magnum opus of the raucous ‘Lights Out’.
Instantaneous heavyset riffs following a brooding lead, juxtaposed with a thin melodic layer before vintage groove takes the stage. Dangerface are high-octane by default and despite their constant non-Hardcore infusions, maintain this through their primary and secondary vocals with effortless ease. ‘Lights Out’ is a song of serious intent and sad but true inspirations. From its determined and mid-paced core lumbering on chased by its marching beat, onward to its melodic lead acting as the lubricated line into your ear canal, Dangerface maintain a keen and inviting intensity. The band’s pre-chorus then moves you into a pseudo-rest-bite, eerie in nature. Dangerface, at this stage, could explode into a violent Hardcore chorus or a simple cathartic refrain. However, as much as the band are capable, this is not their game.
Instead, the band throw a “fuck it” into the wind. Dangerface push into an anthemic chorus of Hardcore n’ Roll. The band have had enough of the existential dread, fake news, the pandemic, killing our own and the onset collapse of society. Dangerface tone their sardonic statements with a snarling smile and cathartically release. They and we, have it all. – ‘Give it up for the new damnation‘. 2020 is a year of woe and the band are frustrated but like all that breathe, they need that sweet release.
The band’s Rock n’ Roll Hardcore is something key to their very existence and has been since their 2017 inception. However, given the lyrical inspirations and ironic tone of ‘Lights Out’, this exuberant mannerism has never been more at home. Dangerface aren’t twisting Hardcore into anything new but rather what suits them. This latest single constantly asserts itself as within Hardcore Punk but does so in and out of more than one box and intrinsically fitting in each.
Dangerface and The ‘Lights Out’ Single are now via Big Day Records. The band have another single this coming December and plenty of other music to destroy your surroundings too. Just remember, destruction is nothing without a little groove.
- Updates:
- Music:
- Big Day Records:
