Dark From Day One
Russellville based Dark From Day One were good enough to get in touch about their music and to send an MP3 over to be checked out. On their website they describe their music as ‘uplifting, killeriffic music that inspires the listener to hope and love’, something which really connected with me. They go on to say ‘in the beginning, we are born into this earth, innocent, not knowing the pressure of stress, nor the evils that humanity is capable of. We just know to embrace life. Our hope is that it will never be anything short of extraordinary. Therefore, we are in the dark from day one.’ Now that’s pretty deep stuff to take on before even hearing the music, so I hit play.
Now, I’ve heard a lot of bands since setting up this site, and I’ve loved hearing pretty much all of them. These guys are however the first ever band to give me chills down my spine as the track New Addiction kicked in. Sounding akin to Limp Bizkit at first (stay with me here), the guitars take on an oozy effect, working their way into your soul before kicking in with the full riff. Soothing vocals kick in to further develop the track and what you’re faced with is nothing short of epic. This track is a track I will listen to for a long time to come, in fact I’ve already spent a lot of time listening to it, and it’s awesome. Catchy chorus’s support the riffing main sections, distorted guitars and solid drum beat – you need to hear this track!
Last Chance kicks in with vocals taking the lead backed by a solid riff and drum beat, this track is another example of these guys being able to put together a hell of a track. Telling a story throughout the lyrics, once again this track is catchy and well pieced together. What’s really striking on this track is the different approaches which the drums take throughout, they alternate between solid beats and rolling backing hits, the combination adds even more to an already well developed track. Face My Fears carries this theme on but in a more raw fashion, opening with a solid guitar line and a very prominent bass line before kicking in with a rolling riff and drum combo behind those haunting vocals. Once again they’ve found the catchy hook in the track and before you know it you’ll be singing along to the words, it’s hard to believe these guys haven’t been over here on a supporting tour yet as they sound perfectly ready.
Find A Way opens sounding immediately more emotional than the previous tracks, there’s something about the chord progression which adds that emotional edge to the track. Building into a section broken down to a solid beat, simple riffing guitars, lead line and slightly rawed out vocals the track powers into another catchy chorus. As the story told by the vocals comes to a close and the track fades out, My Surrender kicks in to take over. Continuing the theme of the previous track this one opens with a lead line played over some solid riffs, all backed by those solid drums. Suddenly kicking in to an almost acoustic section which almost sounds like a hybrid of Incubus and Hoobastank, these guys show they’re capable of writing tracks in different styles so you best not get complacent about them! There’s something pretty special about this track and I’d put this one down as my personal favourite, but that’s just my opinion of course!
Sincere continues the softer approach to things, opening with picked guitars and a lead line with that stunning bass in the background backing everything. As the track kicks in asking you ‘how can I be sincere’ and bringing in the drums, this track once again takes on a catchy form and demonstrates that when they say uplifting, they’re not messing about. Changing between the picked slower guitars and a crunchy backing riff, this track is another well produced and put together example of how a band should write a track! The Way seems to signal a change in things as it opens, sounding much darker at first before kicking into a far more stereotypical modern rock style verse section. The guitars continue to riff around whilst the drums set the pace, it’s the vocals which seem a little different here for some reason. The contrast to the other tracks though works on another level as it makes you sit up and listen again, bringing the music back to the front.
Can I Live opens heavier than previous tracks using some serious riffs over some rolling drums before kicking into a chunky mid section, then breaking down to those picked guitars again. Emotional once again these guys seem intent on adding contrasts into their music to make sure you’re paying attention. Quite possibly the catchiest track from the selection, this has to be a live anthem! As it fades into The Bitter End though, the raw power is brought back in to the guitar work and heaviness takes over again. Sounding incredibly melodic throughout and pulling in a piano line in above the riffs, this track creates a mash up of sounds which all combine to form an absolutely massive noise, and one which will make you sit back and just think….woah.
As final track The One kicks in I’m left wondering why on earth I’ve not heard of these guys before. This track finishes the selection off perfectly, slowing everything down and soothing the soul. Soft guitars and vocals keep things simple and just cool you down after what you’ve heard, fantastic.
I really like Dark From Day One and I want to hear a lot more from them. Their tracks connect with the soul on different levels creating a sound which is both heavy yet moving and melodic across the board, you’ll be left feeling better for listening to it. Definitely one you need to hear!
To find out more about Dark From Day One, check out their Facebook page HERE.
Now, I’ve heard a lot of bands since setting up this site, and I’ve loved hearing pretty much all of them. These guys are however the first ever band to give me chills down my spine as the track New Addiction kicked in. Sounding akin to Limp Bizkit at first (stay with me here), the guitars take on an oozy effect, working their way into your soul before kicking in with the full riff. Soothing vocals kick in to further develop the track and what you’re faced with is nothing short of epic. This track is a track I will listen to for a long time to come, in fact I’ve already spent a lot of time listening to it, and it’s awesome. Catchy chorus’s support the riffing main sections, distorted guitars and solid drum beat – you need to hear this track!
Last Chance kicks in with vocals taking the lead backed by a solid riff and drum beat, this track is another example of these guys being able to put together a hell of a track. Telling a story throughout the lyrics, once again this track is catchy and well pieced together. What’s really striking on this track is the different approaches which the drums take throughout, they alternate between solid beats and rolling backing hits, the combination adds even more to an already well developed track. Face My Fears carries this theme on but in a more raw fashion, opening with a solid guitar line and a very prominent bass line before kicking in with a rolling riff and drum combo behind those haunting vocals. Once again they’ve found the catchy hook in the track and before you know it you’ll be singing along to the words, it’s hard to believe these guys haven’t been over here on a supporting tour yet as they sound perfectly ready.
Find A Way opens sounding immediately more emotional than the previous tracks, there’s something about the chord progression which adds that emotional edge to the track. Building into a section broken down to a solid beat, simple riffing guitars, lead line and slightly rawed out vocals the track powers into another catchy chorus. As the story told by the vocals comes to a close and the track fades out, My Surrender kicks in to take over. Continuing the theme of the previous track this one opens with a lead line played over some solid riffs, all backed by those solid drums. Suddenly kicking in to an almost acoustic section which almost sounds like a hybrid of Incubus and Hoobastank, these guys show they’re capable of writing tracks in different styles so you best not get complacent about them! There’s something pretty special about this track and I’d put this one down as my personal favourite, but that’s just my opinion of course!
Sincere continues the softer approach to things, opening with picked guitars and a lead line with that stunning bass in the background backing everything. As the track kicks in asking you ‘how can I be sincere’ and bringing in the drums, this track once again takes on a catchy form and demonstrates that when they say uplifting, they’re not messing about. Changing between the picked slower guitars and a crunchy backing riff, this track is another well produced and put together example of how a band should write a track! The Way seems to signal a change in things as it opens, sounding much darker at first before kicking into a far more stereotypical modern rock style verse section. The guitars continue to riff around whilst the drums set the pace, it’s the vocals which seem a little different here for some reason. The contrast to the other tracks though works on another level as it makes you sit up and listen again, bringing the music back to the front.
Can I Live opens heavier than previous tracks using some serious riffs over some rolling drums before kicking into a chunky mid section, then breaking down to those picked guitars again. Emotional once again these guys seem intent on adding contrasts into their music to make sure you’re paying attention. Quite possibly the catchiest track from the selection, this has to be a live anthem! As it fades into The Bitter End though, the raw power is brought back in to the guitar work and heaviness takes over again. Sounding incredibly melodic throughout and pulling in a piano line in above the riffs, this track creates a mash up of sounds which all combine to form an absolutely massive noise, and one which will make you sit back and just think….woah.
As final track The One kicks in I’m left wondering why on earth I’ve not heard of these guys before. This track finishes the selection off perfectly, slowing everything down and soothing the soul. Soft guitars and vocals keep things simple and just cool you down after what you’ve heard, fantastic.
I really like Dark From Day One and I want to hear a lot more from them. Their tracks connect with the soul on different levels creating a sound which is both heavy yet moving and melodic across the board, you’ll be left feeling better for listening to it. Definitely one you need to hear!
To find out more about Dark From Day One, check out their Facebook page HERE.