By Jim Rowland
When London post-punk merchants Dealing With Damage released their first album, ‘Ask The Questions’, in February 2020 it proved to be slightly bad timing as it was just as the pandemic hit, meaning they couldn’t get out there and gig the album. So they got another album done instead which finally gets to see the light of day this week in the shape of ‘Use The Daylight’.
If you haven’t heard this band before, for the opening cut ‘Sunrise’ you’d be forgiven for thinking they were some kind of alternative folk act given its dreamy acoustic and country-tinged slide guitar flavour. Normal service is resumed thereafter though, with the likes of ‘Walking Backwards Into the Future’, ‘Instrument’, ‘We Make Bombs To Feel Safe’, ‘Rinse Repeat Rinse’ and ‘Johns Gone’ being the type of spikey, snarling, angular post-punk this band are building a great reputation for. There’s plenty of room for catchy hooks and melodies in there, and lyrically this is sharp, thought-provoking stuff.
‘First, They Ignore You’ heads in a subtle reggae-tinged direction, ‘Keep Moving’ and the brilliantly titled ‘Liberez Wayne Kramer’ are short interludes that head in a more left-field tangent. The big-riffing ‘Write It Down’ is perhaps the album’s most ‘rock’ moment, whilst ‘Bigots vs The Mad Professor’ and ‘Letter From Yootha’ are both bruising cuts of hardcore punk with a twist.
‘Use The Daylight’ is a clever, inventive, diverse, challenging and ultimately very satisfying listen that comes highly recommended for anyone into punk, post-punk and hard-edged art rock.
- ‘Use The Daylight’ is released on Friday (27 January). You can get your copy HERE.
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