D-A-D – Speed Of Darkness

D-A-D
Speed Of Darkness
Label: AFM Records
Out: October 4^th 2024
Playing time: 54:03

They take their time – D-A-D, the rockers from the Danish capital Copenhagen. It took a long eight years between their last album ‘A Prayer For The Loud’ (2019) and its predecessor ‘Dic.nii.lan.daft.erd.ark’. Since then, another five years have passed. ‘Speed Of Darkness’ is the thirteenth studio album to be released in the anniversary year. Its predecessor reached number 1 in Denmark and made it into the top 50 of the German album charts. Anniversary year? Exactly, the band celebrated their fortieth anniversary at the beginning of this year. Incidentally, the Danes are a real experience live. I was able to see this for myself at Metal Hammer Paradise 2014.

‘God Prays To Man’ starts straight away without any frills. Pressure is built up right from the start. A banging mid-tempo rocker. With a big but unfortunately somewhat short guitar solo. D-A-D can at least count to three. Or how else should one understand the song title ‘1st, 2nd & 3rd’. And the Danes deliver the finest riff-driven Rock’n’Roll here. ‘The Ghost’ is dominated by beautiful guitar melodies. And anyone who thinks that ‘Speed Of Darkness’ will really get things going is mistaken. A quiet song with doomy guitars at the beginning. Towards the end there is another guitar solo from the Binzer brothers. Also ‘Head Over Heels’ is quiet Rock. Jesper Binzer’s vocals take centre stage here, underpinned by guitar licks. And during the solo, the guitars literally seem to sing. One of the best songs on the album. On the other hand, ‘Live By Fire’ really rocks right from the start. The twin guitars and drums set the pace, which is slowed down a little during the vocal verses. Strong guitar hooks characterise the mid-tempo rocker ‘Crazy Wings’. In ‘Keep That Mother Down’ you can hear recurring heavy guitar riffs. The chorus is characterised by catchy vocals. There are also hard guitar riffs in ‘Strange Terrain’. ‘In My Hands’ is then back to pure Rock’n’Roll. A recurring guitar melody is burned into the ear canals. ‘Everything Is Gone Now’ breaks previous speed records. Guitars and drums drive the singer. And D-A-D can also be anthemic, as they prove with ‘Automatic Survival’. ‘Waiting Is The Way’ then provides another increase in tempo. The listener had to wait a long time, but the ballad ‘I’m Still Here’ follows at the very end.

The press release for the previous album claimed that D-A-D was Denmark’s greatest Rock band. Well, ‘Speed Of Darkness’ proves once again that the musicians are right at the forefront. And not just in their home country, but worldwide. The album is a high-calibre piece of Hard Rock. Every single song is full of unbridled enthusiasm. It’s also fun to listen to. Forty years and not a bit quieter. It will be interesting to see what the future holds.

D-A-D – The Ghost: https://youtu.be/YlIbmW5Q6gE?si=LeNlUgSQKDRSYfWE

Lineup:

Jesper Binzer – Vocals, Guitar
Stig Pedersen – Bass
Jacob Binzer – Guitar
Laust Sonne – Drums

Track list:

1. God Prays to Man
2. 1st, 2nd & 3rd
3. The Ghost
4. Speed of Darkness
5. Head over
6. Live by Fire
7. Crazy Wings
8. Keep That Mother Down
9. Strange Terrain
10. In My Hands
11. Everything Is Gone Now
12. Automatic Survival
13. Waiting Is the Way
14. I’m Still Here