Review THE DAMNED ‘Darkadelic’

The Damned started in 1977 and belong to the pioneers of British punk rock. Since the band presented their debut with ‘Damned Damned Damned’ they have become an established part of the music scene. In the 80s the band made a shift towards gothic rock. Several band breakups, reunions and restarts caused big gaps between the releases. But now, five years after ‘Evil Spirits’, the punk rock veterans present their newest studio album ‘Darkadelic’.

46 years after their debut, The Damned once again present themselves at their best. With Dave Vanian, Captain Sensible and Paul Gray the guys of the first era are on board as well. In addition, Monty Oxymoron provides an excellent and typical keyboard sound while Will Taylor, a new member of The Damned family, takes place behind the drums.

‘Darkadelic’ contains twelve new tracks and starts with ‘The Invisible Man’. The song, which has already been released as a single, shows above all that The Damned can still write bloody good rock songs. Captain Sensible’s guitar gives the tunes the necessary heaviness and it’s Vanian’s unique baritone vocals that immediately give the songs their very own The Damned sound. In addition, a skillfully integrated tempo change provides the necessary variation and so one becomes curious for more. With the snappy ‘Bad Weather Girl’ there is then also more before the rather psychedelic elements push themselves into the foreground with ‘You’re Gonna Realise’. Especially the chorus immediately puts you under its spell.

A bit calmer and more reflective is ‘Western Promise’ before punk rock and vampire vibe shake hands on ‘Wake the Dead’, a combination that unfolds a very special shine.

With the power of a Harley engine, ‘Motorcycle Man’ takes off. The song has the potential to become a smashing hit and should definitely be listened to by you. Here all cylinders are running at full power und the smooth ending of the song is an extra factor for excitement. Towards the end of the record, ‘Leader of the Gang’ and ‘From the Lips’ are two songs that are certainly not bad, but not exactly the highlights on ‘Darkadelic’. It becomes however exciting with ‘Roderick’. The track ends the album and is a goosebump giving ballad with a horror theater vibe.

‘Darkadelic’, meaning the mix of ‘dark’ and ‘psychedelic’, perfectly sums up the sound of The Damned’s new album. The longplayer embodies the best of these two worlds in 49 minutes, wrapped up in songs that please from start to finish. There are experts at work here and you get the impression that The Damned wanted to do this record exactly that way, without any restrictions or constraints.