Album Review: Dance Gavin Dance - 'Acceptance Speech'

Many bands don’t make it through the number of line-up changes that Dance Gavin Dance have endured. Each time a member has been lost, the band has persevered and have come out the other end stronger than ever; getting better and better with each release. So it’s no wonder that the group’s latest effort, ‘Acceptance Speech’ is very solid and a very good record. But, like every album, it has its downfalls. Let’s break it down.


The album is hectic. We’re talking throaty screams, funk inspired guitar riffs and an all-out crazy rhythm section that will probably make you jitterbug like mad. This is what good post-hardcore is all about. Not breakdowns, no over the top synth and no blast beats, rather, a certain raw, passionate and honest sound with aspects of other genres mixed in. And Dance Gavin Dance really hone in on that on ‘Acceptance Speech’. Take the title track for example. The screaming parts are just fantastic. The vocals are damn right crazy while the backing instrumentation shows an influence of jazz and funk. It creates a really strong sounding song that will be sure to get the energy flowing live. Some other great songs are ‘Jesus H. Macy’ and ‘Demo Team’ where the screams are given a certain melody from the guitars, which results in a fantastic harmony.

 

On the other side of things, you’ve probably guessed the con, right? The cleans. Look, they’re by no means bad…they’re just not exactly a perfect fit to the rest of the album. With the heavier sections being so fantastic and absolutely energetic, the cleans really bring the songs down a notch. They stop the pace and energy of the tracks very suddenly. Songs like the title track - which are like The Chariot 2.0 when the screams are rolling along - die in the arse when the cleans come in, completely messing up the momentum and flow of the album. With the vocals “beyond” falsetto range, they do not fit in with the rest of the music. And as such, the instrumentation takes a down turn and becomes more stripped back and melodic. This makes the songs feel jumpy and like a jigsaw puzzle that wasn’t put together correctly. Tillian is a great singer (albeit, with some auto-tune) but he just doesn’t fit into this whole crazy post-hardcore sound. However, it is worth noting that when both vocals harmonise it is fantastic. Songs like ‘Carve’ and ‘ Demo Team’ are perfect examples of this. The songs feel very filled and powerful, so to speak.
 

All of that aside, ‘Acceptance Speech’ is great. The heavier parts are just so damn good you won’t mind the out of place melodies. It’s all worth it in the end because there are some great songs and sections on here that really make this a solid album.

‘Acceptance Speech’ is enjoyable. It has its highs and lows, but the end result is a positive one. Well worth a listen.

1.  Jesus H.macy
2. The Robot With human Hair pt. 4
3. Acceptance Speech
4. Carve
5. Doom & Gloom
6. Strawberry Swisher pt. 3
7. Honey Revenge
8. Demo Team
9. Death of the Robot With Human Hair
10. The Jiggler
11. Turn Off the Lights. I'm Watching Back to the Future