New Album

[hzzi]

Hello to all! This is my first post, although I've been a long time lurker here...

I've been a Danko Jones fan since Born A Lion.

I received the promotional copy of Never Too Loud two weeks ago and I've been listening to it a lot. Hell, at least twice a day, at least...

I'll bet that if you're a long time fan like me, you'll need some time to digest this album.

First of all, it sounds very different compared to other DJ albums, especially guitar and drums. They are not so dry as before, and guitar has more distortion than before.

If you listen to The Code Of The Road you'll get the picture. It pretty much sums up how this new album is mixed and produced.

Never Too Loud is more mellow and not as raw as its predecessors.

This album is the most poppiest and melodic album DJ has ever made. Take Me Home even has acoustic guitars and (probably real) string section! This song is nothing you would have expected to hear from DJ. It is also very good power pop song that hopefully gets a lot air play.

Danko seems to be singing more and screaming less on this album. Some songs (especially City Streets and Ravenous) sound a lot like Thin Lizzy. Danko could easily front a really credible sounding Thin Lizzy tribute band...

So, does Never Too Loud suck, I hear you ask.

No.

Never Too Loud is a good, solid rock record that clearly tries to conquer new audiences to Danko Jones. As I said, I needed some time to get used to its mixing, but the tunes included rock nevertheless.

Can't wait to April when they're coming to my home country!

Cheers!

[Tidyman]

You're one of the privelaged few who've heard the record hzzi. I'm envious as shit.

[I like to ball]

Ditto.

Thanks for the review... I think everyone is excited for the "changes" on the album.

Damn it.... I am going crazy...

CANT WAIT!!!!!!!

[lusitano]

already listened "take me home"... people this record will be a surprise... a big surprise i guess. Really, i don´t know what to think!

[hzzi]

tidyman said:

You're one of the privelaged few who've heard the record hzzi. I'm envious as shit.

This is one of the benefits of my profession... ;D

[rocky]

Thanks hzzi for the heads-up on Never Too Loud, we'll all be ready now, ready to expect the unexpected. Must admit, my first reaction to 'Code of the Road' was to be a bit disappointed, but i kept playing it and sure enough i've become addicted to the song, just like every other DJ song. I think it would to fair to say that we started to notice a subtle shift in the band's stylings with a couple of the selections on Sleep is the Enemy, maybe i'm wrong, but i could sense a change was coming. So now, i'm actually extremely excited about the prospects for this release, and i'll bet my grandma's old age pension that it'll be commercially the most successful Danko Jones album to date, and certainly i expect, at least, "Take Me Home", to become a major hit on the charts. These boys will always kick ass, no worries there, they have taken it to a new level, the next level... Viva La Difference.

[Truthin']

I've only had the chance to listen to the album once so far, but Hzzi absolutely nailed the review. I too have been a fan since "Born A Lion," so it seems we share a common frame of reference, and I agree 100% that is by far the most melodic, accessible and catchy record Danko's done yet. (I can see the press clips now: "Hookier than a tackle box...")

Because the Thin Lizzy influence is indeed shining through more and more, I think this is most drastic evolution the band has undergone since the jump between "I'm Alive..." and "Born A Lion." However, it's still unquestionably a Danko album. This was made especially clear during "Ravenous," the next-to-last song on the album. The riff is straight out of "I Need Experience," from that Chicago '98 bootleg mentioned here semi-regularly. In other words, melody has always been an important part of this band -- it just might have been overshadowed a bit by the swagger, the attitude, the powerful live performances, etc.

Bottom line: If you enjoy singing along to choruses like the one in "Lovercall," there's plenty to like here. I look forward to getting more familiar with the album in the weeks ahead.

[jedinathan]

ARGH! you guys are killing me with the reviews! Stupid having to wait til march... I can't fucking wait.

[beercellar]

the title track realy is powerful live, and code on the raod, cant rem the other 2 they did ( missed what they were called - some one was yaking to me at time LOL , cant wait to hear the cd version, not long , i reckomend if you ve a chance to see them live this year, go spend your cash on the cd and your local venue their at.

[bighairygrinch]

i've just realized that Ravenous has the exact same riff as one of their early songs(pre Born A Lion) called I Need Experience.

[Mastodon]

Ravenous = Drop Your Lip Bomb

Never heard of "I Need Experience"

[bighairygrinch]

it's in the Chicago 1998 bootleg. so is an amazing version of Love is Unkind.

[philthy]

As off today, I'm the proud owner of NEVER TOO LOUD!!!!!

Great record guys, from what I've heard, it's seems to be better and more diverse than the previous ones! ;D

So if the neighbours should complain about me turning up the stereo, I always have the perfect excuse... IT'S NEVER TOO LOUD!!!!!!!

[bighairygrinch]

my faves are

code of the road
ravenous
city streets
still in high school

o boy....when i first heard Take Me Home, i was thinking "this is a good song, but it doesn't exactly sound like Danko Jones" it's like Danko Lite, the Diet Coke of Danko Jones - only one calorie. was very different from what they've done before, so it took me by surprise. good song, just not what i expected on a DJ album. they can definitely hit mainstream radio with that song and get noticed by the heathens who don't know Danko Jones.

[Fatty98]

Bought the digipack version yesterday, they even had to open the box for me... Woohoo! Listened through it today, it really is a lot better on CD than the Myspace preview. City Streets and Still in High school rock even harder.

My girlfriend was also enthusiastic, although she even said it's not quite like the Danko Jones we were used too, but we're surely not disappointed. Quite a few new gems on this album.

[NattyDread]

Alright, got the Digipak-Version on Saturday, listened to the record a few times now.

I don't like it. It just sounds so wrong in so many ways. Where are the balls? I wanted it to get better the more you listen to it, but it doesn't. To me, it's getting worse everytime you listen to it. Maybe it's just me and I don't get the evolution, but where is the bite? The danger? The grunt? The hunger? The energy? Sorry, but 'Never Too Loud' is just the wrong title for a record like this.
I don't know...maybe putting the focus on "stepping it up sonically" didn't do the record all too good. Personally, I don't mind a a rather raw production style, I quite like in fact.

Alright, enough of the rant, maybe one day it just goes click and my mind will be changed. Doubt it though.

[dhrgetic]

nattydread said:

I don't like it...

I had the same feeling at first, but luckily it lasted for only one day. Then it grew on me and it's still growing. Now I'm infected!

I also think that "stepping it up sonically" is not something that is too much important for the Danko Jones boogie groove. The grunt, the hunger and the energy is still there but it's much more polished and it's not as much prominent as on the older albums. Maybe this is just what this band needs to finally receive the recognition that it justly deserves.

I can see that you are the Entombed fan (as am I!) and this album stirs the similar feelings as did the Entombed's "Same Difference". For years I though that this album was not even close to anything they did in the past, especially after the killer like "To Ride, Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth". Than, many years after, I started listening to this album as it was recorded by the rock band and i realized that it was a great album.

[NattyDread]

I can't say it's a bad record, that would be far from the truth. And I can see that there was a need for change in order to keep things fresh and interesting. But for me, it didn't quite work out as intended. "Forest For The Trees" is one of the best tracks the band ever did and "Take Me Home" is quite a gem, but then there's stuff like "Still In High School" or "King Of Magazines" which I feel are different to be different.

And the fact that Danko stresses the point that they are a rockband and that they will always stick to balls to the wall-rock (see the bio on the dankojones.com) is unnecessary in my opinion, as it puts a limit on their creativity. Either you make a balls to the wall-record or you don't. If the latter is the case, and it's still a good record, who cares? But "Never Too Loud" sits between the chairs, which I never experienced on a Danko Jones record before.
Everybody goes through a process of change, and absolute statements may prove premature one day. I'd rather hear an honest ballad than an uninspired rocksong, whatever image or history of a band seem to dictate.

To me, "Never Too Loud", as much as it pains me to say, is a mediocre record. I don't love it and as a record, I can't hate it.
But it's not just a record. It's a Danko Jones record, which sets the standards so much higher.

[BrownBomber]

I think we need to be honest with ourselves and come right out and say what a lot of us (not all) are thinking - it sounds definitely like more of a commercial record. I think I remember reading that We Sweat Blood sold only about 5000 (the number might be wrong but in any case it was ridiculously low) copies in Canada. Sure there were issues with the record company but regardless, if you're playing music for a living you need to sell in order to make that next record.

That being said, I don't think the record suffers in any way. I listen to the record and I can't help but notice how much better the songs are as a WHOLE. In the past a lot of the the songs just had one in your face, aggressive riff in them. Those are definitely great songs but they certainly lack a bit of interest as time goes on. I find this record so much more interesting in terms of how the songs are written. The riff-based parts are still there but there are other things in the songs that (for me) make them more interesting. I think the bridge in City Streets really epitomizes this. The chorus in the song is kind of melodic too, which makes it really sort of pleasing to listen to.
I think the production on this album is really fantastic. JC's dirty bass tone that was on all the other records is gone but it is still really punchy. The overdubs are done really well and Dan's drumming sounds full but not overpowering. In my opinion there's absolutely nothing that gets lost in the mix...it all just sounds great. I think they definitely stepped it up sonically....this is their best SOUNDING record. Born a Lion is probably my favourite record just because it really captures that hard rock boogie groove sound but this one is definitely up there.

[bighairygrinch]

i think we just aren't used to hearing Danko Jones being produced and mixed by top-notch industry pros. it's an extremely polished sound they got out of that studio, and we're used to the raw sound from previous recordings. and i bet you all that these songs on NTL won't sound that way when done live. the first 3 albums come closest to how they sound live.

having said that, i can't help but agree that the name of the album doesn't really match the content....

i can totally imagine Take Me Home playing on the radio between Avril Lavigne and Justin Timberlake. i think that says enough.