Review D.D. VERNI “Dreadful Company”

There is no need for a long introduction of D.D. Verni. The bass player from New Jersey is one of the founding members of thrash metal veterans Overkill and to this day remains one of the most stable pillars of this legendary band.

Being familiar with the musical trademarks of Overkill also means being aware of a certain punk vibe that runs through their songs. It is D.D. Verni who has this passion for punk rock, with bands like The Damned and The Ramones being two examples of the inspiration for this anarchic style of rock music. So it’s no surprise that Verni has started to record a punk rock album. “Dreadful Company” is the title of this solo album, which is the second of his career after “Barricades”, which was released in 2018.

“Dreadful Company” contains eleven songs, all great representatives of punk rock. Verni wrote all these songs and, in addition to playing bass, he also took on the vocal duties and plays guitar on “Dreadful Company”. To give the album a strong heartbeat, Verni turned to none other than Jason Bittner, who shares a similar passion for punk rock, and the duo delivers.

There is a lot of The Ramones embedded in these eleven songs, but there is much more to explore than just a ‘1,2,3 approach’. While the opener ‘Lunkhead’ is one of those solid and straightforward punk rock songs, it is ‘Red Flag’ that has a sound more reminiscent of bands like Bad Religion. However, Verni gives each of the songs an individual touch, which also has to do with a certain metal vibe that comes into play.

“Wild Horses” is next and the meaning of freedom couldn’t be expressed better. “Call of the Highway” is another high octane song on this release and that punk rock can be very emotional is what “Tears on My Heart” is about, just in a different way than the usual ballad setting.

“Dreadful Company” is a superbly crafted punk rock album. It is this dirt-under-the-fingernails spirit that sets this release apart from many other albums. It is the spirit of punk rock which is the fuel for these eleven songs and the reason why the album has a very authentic sound. These songs are made for small, sticky clubs rather than huge arenas.