The early 21st century has been a time of metamorphosis for punk rock, a period that has splayed the genre, offering a wide swath bands attributing their sounds to the genre, and few actually stepping forward with music to leverage such big talk. Revivalists like Rancid and Green Day have taken vastly different approaches, the former slipping into classicist regalia, the latter emerging as rock-opera visionaries. Emo has sucked out the attitude, replacing it with tawdry makeup and carnival image; mainstream pop upstarts have also summoned the sneer of punk’s forefathers, selling out the anti-machine premise of the music that fought its way into the culture of ’70s, and managed relevance through ‘80s and early ‘90s hardcore.
But all is not lost. There are torchbearers of punk music that remain, tucked below the radar, fired up and fighting back into modern consciousness.
Baltimore, Maryland’s Double Dagger is embracing all facets of the punk ethos with stripped down, fierce songs with subject matter scouring political and social issues, and a DIY approach that recognizes the glory days of split singles and 7-inch releases. Formed in 2002, the quartet – Nolen Strals (vocals), Bruce Willen (bass), and Denny Bowen (drums) – took its art-school origins and set out to re-establish punk music, while breaking apart stale preconceptions. Adding to the sparse nature of the music is its drum/bass/singer makeup, the effect devoid of pretense and about as in-your-face as it can get.
More, Double Dagger’s fourth release and first for Chicago’s Thrill Jockey, reeks of bombast and unrest, the jarring instrumentation, frequent repetition, raw hooks, and antagonistic delivery are a momentous celebration for a new, unpolluted age of punk.
Learn:
Double Dagger Online
Listen:
Double Dagger on Myspace
Buy:
Thrill Jockey Records
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