Having a whole bunch of albums standing of a bunch of shelves poses a problem: How can i justify buying all that **** if I don't use it? Thus, I've decided that I have to attempt to appreciate every single album I own and post my thoughts on each on as I slowly chew my way through my 400-500 CD's.
A sizeable review for each is simply too much to expect, so it will just be a bunch of thoughts on each album, but no rating. I don't believe in rating systems, as it seems perverse to try and boil a work of art down to a number. What I will do is indicate whether the artist in question is among my favourites and whether the album in question is among my favourites. Those two do not always apply at the same time.
I'll simply write it like this:
***Favourite artist***
***Favourite album***
Albums will not necessairly be reviewed/commented on alphabetically. AFter all, what are the chances I'll feel like listening to them in the exact order they have on my shelf? Not gonna happen.
Ok, so that's all as far as the introduction goes. Let's move on to the first candidate!
D.A.D. - Simpatico
rock/1997
***Favourite Album***
D.A.D. is one of very few Danish bands I really like, despite being Danish myself. They used to call themselves Disneyland After Dark, but Disney threatened them with a lawsuit and they had to change it. True story, by the way.
I used to listen to this album all the time back around 1998/1999 while I sat up late at night and drew spaceships with pencil on white printer paper. Basically, every song on this album is etched into my brain for good. The album also had a fair few radio hits back in the day, but I don't think they ever really made a splash outside of Denmark.
Simpatico is a pretty eclectic album. There's hints of metal, lounge music, a pinch of banjo, a song backed by violins and songs ranging from soft rock to wild freakouts. The singer, Jesper Binzer, has a very raspy, throaty voice with a strange sort of tone to it. Sometimes his singing feels slightly Axel Rose-ish, but frankly, I think Binzer blows Rose out of the water with ease.
Another strength of the band is the lead guitar playing of his brother, Jacob Binzer, whose solos are some of the most tuneful and tasteful you're likely to encounter in any rock band. Seriously, this guy would be all over every rock guitarist list if only the band had ever attained international fame.
The drummer and the bass player both hold their own, but they're more functional than part of what really makes the band special. The bassist is most notable for wearing feather boas and using outlandish custom bass designs live. He usually has only two strings on these, which gives away just how simple his playing is.
The songwriting on this album is very strong and I feel like every track is very memorable. It's hard to be neutral in my observation when I've heard the album so many god damn times over the years, but it really is very melodic and sing-along friendly. I never saw a party where this album
didn't seem to make a party more lively and bright (D.A.D. was always frequently played at private parties, at least as much as Dizzy Mizz Lizzy (another Danish band)).
The whole album is probably easy to find on Youtube and Spotify, but in closing, I'll post some selected tracks in spoiler tags here: