Daylight

The Difference In Good And Bad Dreams EP

There are a couple indications on Daylight's newest release, The Difference In Good And Bad Dreams, that the band are moving forward from their deeply depressing, Small Brown Bike-indebted sound of yore. One is when they harmonize on opener “On The Way To Dad’s” that they're “sick of writing songs about killing myself,” subject matter they did seem to heavily dwell on with prior EPs. The other is “Damp,” which starts like Jawbreaker's “Ashtray Monument” at half-speed and then lays on mid-’90s alternative crunch and stomp in the key of Quicksand and Nirvana.

Otherwise, this four-song release is a logical, expected progression from 2010's Dispirit EP. Mournful, slow-moving twinkles usher in “Hungry At A Funeral” (much like the bridge of Dispirit's “Selfish”), with better interplay between co-vocalists/guitarists Taylor Madison (his Cobain-esque, muttering snarl) and Jake Clarke (strained, musky yelps).

While the production tone feels a little inconsistent from track to track, there's delight in Daylight's embrace of new sounds and subjects (a theme of suffering from sleep paralysis is fairly obvious). This EP places them a little closer to the likes of Balance And Composure (“Damp”) and Sainthood Reps (“In My Dreams”) than Title Fight and Basement, and while there's admitted overlap between these scenes, Daylight are striking a good counterbalance for the time being.

Run For Cover http://www.runforcoverrecords.com

“Damp”