Dead Black Distortion;



So I got a hell of a shock when I found this email in my inbox from youtube with a video and this note:

"Our first ever concert. Hope you enjoy, feel free to give us constructive criticism! :D

Thanks!
-DBD "

I thought initially that I was being hacked and was a bit sketched out, but i googled them and found them on FB. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dead-Black-Distortion/155680381132461 . So I looked them up before watching them and found out what they said about themselves:

"We are a heavy metal band that is trying to mix PUNK, grunge, screamo, and general heavy metal into a big pot...thanks to any and all fans that find us!"

They turned out to be three kids from the White Rose City (York, Pennsylvania, USA) named Rob Auchey, Dakota Michael and Arik Trimmer. I am still trying figure out who plays what instrument so apologies for no names below.

And I thought, fuck me, i like punk and grunge, this could be worth a look. So once i had sent the kids and wife to bed i cranked it up and let it go.

I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting a lot. (after all, who the hell am I?) 

But once I got past the crappy camera work and the below average covers (I firmly believe no one can or should cover Nirvana and I am not a fan of Gorillaz) I was pleasantly surprised to hear two originals that i liked. Atrocious was first up, followed by Diabolic. I felt that while they were somewhat similar to one another they were pretty cool and i felt that DBD had spent some time in writing them and planning them out.

The Good;

Hell, that drummer is tight and they said he was only new so i am interested in seeing him progress. I liked the enthusiasm and stage presence of the lead singer. He was amping up the crowd and giving his music hell. The bassist seemed solid and played a nice solo

The Bad;

It is hard to criticise these guys because they are first chaps to actually 'ask' for my opinion but here goes: They lack 'togetherness' and i felt the lead singer was stuck between singing and playing and one often suffered as the other went into overdrive. This is, however, the eternal dilemma of a three piece and sadly we are not all Billie Joe Armstrong or Kurt Cobain. The good news is that they will, if they stick it out, get tighter and better. ( i suppose people could say the same thing about this average blog) Will they go nuclear like another band from York, PA; Live? (Yes, Live as in Live of Throwing Copper and Secret Samadi Fame) 

Perhaps, perhaps not. But I hope so and I am truly interested in keeping tabs on them. (if they are looking for motivation they should think about the relatively recent success of Halestorm. Google it.

And lastly;

I'm not going to pretend to be a musician. Anyone who has heard me attempt to murder my guitar will testify that I would have more success attempting the Kurt Cobain throwdown than anything else, but I am (for my sins) an opinionated, arrogant pratt and in this instance I firmly believe that these boys could use another guitarist to add some depth and Just the camera work. Rock on lads!!