Spinefarm
Out Now
Although I am not familiar with Southern California’s DAYSEEKER, the fact they are appearing at this year’s Good Things Festival is good enough for me to check out their new – and sixth – album Creature In The Black Night.
Opening with Pale Moonlight, an ambient wave of melancholy stirs the waters before a gentle opening passage from Rory Rodriguez sets the tone for proceedings with an introspective and immersive delivery that eases along at a steady tempo, sporadically offset by a hint of urgency.
But just as I am preparing to write this song off as another easily digestible and safe album opener a wicked breakdown sends us spiralling in an unexpected direction with chunky guitars and more purposeful drumming almost goading some harsh vocals before a hoarse whisper brings things back to Earth a touch. From this point, Pale Moonlight takes on a much different sonic landscape, complete with more intent and ferocity, hinting at a much harder underbelly underneath the nice guy exterior.
The title track is next, with another softer score starting the track before giving way to an even softer body of work that screams loss and sorrow. Rodriguez has a great voice with more than capable harmonies, and from what I can tell at this early stage, Dayseeker are more of a soft rock band with harder edges, but I could be wrong.
Creature In The Black Night seems content to meander along at a reasonable pace throughout, with the occasional whispered passage threatening something more sinister, which arrives towards the end as drummer Zac Mayfield increases the tempo for just long enough to portray a sense of danger in the lyrics, but then it’s back to the softer stuff until the song’s conclusion that snaps to a close amid a mini wave of chaos.
Crawl Back To My Coffin continues the decadent themes, with a layer of piano and electronics that soon gives way to a light guitar run, which in turn leads into another softer vocal delivery from Rodriguez. All of Dayseeker’s songs have an honest, pleasant disposition that would be lapped up by commercial radio, which is why you have to respect the moments of harshness which could derail that bid for radio acceptance.
The whole band work well together, with Gino Sgambelluri [guitar] and Ramone Valerio [bass] creating a sonic layer of ambivalence that is the perfect backbone to the style of music favoured by the band. Mayfield is busy behind the kit, throwing in rolls wherever the space allows, while Sgambelluri maintains a placid guitar tone to underscore the vulnerability in Rodriguez‘ voice.
Shapeshift laps gently into earshot as Rodriguez leads the track vocally before the rest of the band kicks in with a much quicker tempo than heard thus far. It might have more urgency, but Shapeshift is still a solid rock number that provides a vehicle for the soaring and, at times, majestic voice of Rodriguez. You get the sense that Mayfield is dying to cut loose, with a driving and solid drumming display that is held back only so long before a tasty breakdown allows him to add double kicks and anger-fuelled drum rolls as the harsh vocals elevate Shapeshift momentarily before regressing into its initial orbit.
The ferocity returns briefly as the track winds to an end and although musically Dayseeker are ticking all of the right boxes, I would still love to hear anger in more of their songs for a sustained period.
Soulburn begins with more piano-led ambience as Rodriguez eases his way into the track with a measured opening salvo that oozes pain and angst without the aid of instruments. It’s a unique talent to be able to convey emotions with vocals alone, but one which is handled effortlessly by Rodriguez.
A brief electronic shuffle adds momentary spice, but Soulburn is a vehicle for a vocal attack with minimal distractions aside from a repetitive shuffle that simmers gently below the surface. It’s a pleasant enough track, but one which, to me, didn’t really go anywhere. But it did once more show Rodriguez can sing!
Bloodlust sounds more up my alley and doesn’t disappoint as a wall of drums and guitars fill the air, and a strained cry of Bloodlust threatens something more sinister. But instead, Dayseeker pull back to the softer side of their musical psyche, despite the continued power of Mayfield‘s drumming. There’s some wicked breakdowns here, and the distorted guitar is highly promising, but again, I would love to hear Dayseeker play a whole song with this attitude. Just for shits and giggles.
That’s not to say Bloodlust is bad – far from it. In fact, it’s my pick of the album so far. The second half of the track contains more in the way of anger and hostility, which is offset by the cleaner side of the sonic tapestry, but when Dayseeker decide to get down and dirty, they do it with style!
Cemetery Blues has a nice ring to it and comes to life with a swirl of emotion, exemplified by a delicate vocal intro that offers safe passage into the track. This track seems content to ease along before Mayfield kicks things into gear with a bout of authority that is brought back to calmer waters as Rodriguez lays more feelings of discontent over the track. This doesn’t last long before a hoarse whisper induces the demons, and Dayseeker take things into much darker territory. Their ability to integrate clean and harsh moments into their music is impressive and impactful, with Cemetery Blues being no exception.
Nocturnal Remedy opens with a wave of electronics before Rodriguez once more displays his softer side with an even tempo and digestible opening passage that is engulfed by more electronics and instruments. Dayseeker are masters at creating moods and atmospheres with their music, taking you on a sonic journey through a plethora of emotions that never get bogged down into something that feels forced or contrived. Another whispered passage sets the wheels in motion with more expression as a bold breakdown is quickly tempered by the return of the softer side of humanity, complete with layered backing vocals that take on an almost ethereal nature.
The Living Dead has to be an aggressive tune, surely, but judging by the quiet strains of calm that introduce the song, it seems I am sadly mistaken. Sadl,y because I would love to go out with a bang, but that doesn’t seem to be the overall sonic ark Dayseeker want to be known for. And when you do the softer side of rock as good as this, why would they?
This is a quiet, tempered track that floats along at a measured pace, led mostly by the vocal prowess of Rodriguez, who continues to impress. The calmness ensues throughout, with no breakdowns or harsh moments, and despite my prejudices, I have to admit it was a pretty cool track.
Meet The Reaper is something we all must do eventually, and Dayseeker seem to be willing to take our hand as we do so. More atmospherics fill the void before drums and electronics break the status quo and send the track reeling into harder rock territory despite the soft underbelly. It’s hard to say exactly where Dayseeker fit in the scheme of things, but I have always been anti-genre labelling, so let’s just say they rock.
It seems the reaper is even happy with the music delivered here, as he sits quietly in the background without forcing his way into the forefront. There are moments of hardness throughout this track, all the while offset by the more approachable nature in which Dayseeker choose to ply their trade. And it seems to work because the reaper has still failed to materialise as we move onto the final track, Forgotten Ghost.
Which again breathes life on the back of emotive vocals and a constant underscore that offers a sense of troubled sorrow and unfulfilled dreams. Clever use of instrumentalisations and electronics provide differing musical dimensions to Forgotten Ghost, but it seems only fitting that we are signing off from the album with the strains of Rodriguez and his smooth vocals as our parting gift.
This is a strangely comforting album from Dayseeker. Although at its core you would call Creature In The Black Night a rock album, Dayseeker have managed to introduce a variety of other textures to provide alternating worlds of musicality that would only deepen more with each listen.
