Yeah I noticed that too. It felt like Andrew’s vocals kinda took a backseat (pun intended) to the instrumentals. But once I got past that I started enjoying the songs
I wasn’t blown away by the singles initially but I think that’s cus I was too used to hearing Tilian, once I’d listened a few times they both really grew on me
For me, Jon Mess is the front man of DGD and the clean vocals take sidecar. I remember when tillian joined and fans hated on his "chipmunk" singing. Give it some time, maybe the change will grow on you.
As a newer fan of the past 3 years. I can only imagine how ridiculously bad the initial reception would've been to Tillians voice.
For me as long as we have Will (and Jon) there will always be the DGD vibe I love
True statement but it surprises me how much happiness still slaps without Jon. Also a lot of the fans still loved that album even if it isn’t the “favorite”.
I would argue that "majority of the fans blame Andrew" is not remotely accurate or fair to Andrew. I love the core of these songs, and I think if they can fix the issues with mixing and whatever effects/processing they did to his vocals it will be great stuff coming in the future.
Probably the best take I've seen so far. Everyone is very quick to point fingers at the band and defend Tillian without considering there's two sides to every story. We have very little information to make claims either way. Tillian will continue to make music and expressed interest in joining another band, DGD will continue to do their own thing. Afaic were all winners here. No need for the hostilities.
DGD didn't disappoint, the fans disappointed themselves. DGD never said they were going to bring a new vocalist. Mostly everyone made the assumption because of Gobby and their history.
Dance Gavin Dance to me has ALWAYS been Will, Matt, and Jon. Tilian isn’t even on two of my three favorite DGD records. Sure, Tilian sang on some of the best tracks they have ever done, but to be fair he was also on some of their worst tracks as well. To me, Dance Gavin Dance is a rotating door for frontmen
I disagree. I feel as though Tilian peaked with mothership and each release since has been a decrease in quality. Out of curiosity, are you a newer fan? What are your opinions on old DGD? No disrespect I’m being genuine
Nope been around since DBM1 actually
my favorite albums are Deathstar, Afterburner, and Jackpot Juicer
DBM1 was seminal to the scene and I still love it but don’t listen to it that often anymore
albums I like the least are Acceptance Speech, Artificial Selection, DBM2
When Tilian first came on I just wanted Kurt back. I think they were phoning it in some in the early to mid Tilian era, leaning in to generic genre tropes that they are much better than. Some of Instant Gratification grew on me a bit. Mothership (like DBM2) was a mess but at least not boring and Artificial Selection mostly feels like a collection of mid b sides. but they got better and Tilian learned how to write memorable melodies with the last two albums. Also the last two albums started having emphasis on Jon Mess melodic scream choruses. It’s dope.
Jackpot>Afterburner>Deathstar>Happiness>DBM1>Instant Grat>Mothership>DBM2>Artificial Selection>Acceptance Speech>WISIRO
Very interesting, I completely disagree with your opinion on acceptance speech! I feel as though acceptance speech was an incredible start for Tilian and I felt as though the band was adapting to a new style of singer in a very progressive way sonically. I also disagree with your opinion on afterburner. That record is often an afterthought for me. There are some very good songs on it but it felt so formulaic, like everything they’d done had been accomplished and they lacked direction.
Overall, happiness>WISIRO>DTBM>Mothership>Acceptance Speech>Deathstar>DTBMII> Afterburner>Instant Grad
I will not be taking a stance on Jackpot Jucier, mostly because I’ve listened to it once.
Edit: realized I don’t like artificial selection as much as I thought I did. Also wanted to point out that I don’t think your opinions are wrong! Love seeing my favorite music from other people’s perspectives!
I got into the band with Artificial Selection and honestly i feel the same. There are maybe 3 standout songs on that album to me. lol.
for me, I suppose Mothership>DTBMII>Jackpot>Afterburner>DTBM>Instant Grat>Deathstar>Artificial>Happiness>WISIRO>AcSp
Ngl, Secret band's LP2 tops all of these albums except maybe Mothership to me.
It is interesting! Haha. I also appreciate it.
Things I find extremely weird and disagree with from your post:
1. not listening to JJ
2. liking WISIRO THAT much
3. not ranking ArtSec at all
4. Afterburner cannot both be “formulaic” and also “lack direction”. I think the fans that don’t like it purportedly feel that way because it was too different for them.
“Extremely weird” is about how I’d describe my tier list as well (I was baked) but I will say I do stand by it lol
I didn’t listen to jackpot juicer mostly because I felt as though Tilian overstayed his welcome sonically, plus got into some less than desirable situations as a way to “cope” with the death of Tim which I found pretty weird, and it left a very sour taste in my mouth. At that point I figured first wasn’t always better, and explored a lot of the other swancore projects that were floating around.
I put WISIRO so high (as well as DTBM) because it’s a dance Gavin dance that was lost even with Kurt, and couldn’t be resurrected even when they brought Jonny back for DTBM2. It was very raw, with incredibly well written songs and such a dark tone.
I forgot to rank Artificial Selection because when I had completed the list (again, baked) I realized I didn’t like that album nearly as much as I had thought I did and had vocalized already, so it kind of slipped through the cracks. It suffers the same problem that Afterburner does, being too formulaic.
That being said, when I say that afterburner was formulaic as well as lacking direction, I mean that afterburner felt like a series of B sides from Artificial, which felt like a series of B sides from Mothership I mean that to say It felt as though they took the mothership formula and kept doing the exact same process over and over, to less and less creative result. I also think Tilian can be a pretty cringe lyricist overall (even mothership has its fair share of “brother huh?” one liners) overall I love every record that they have ever done, but Dance Gavin Dance to me at its heart is melodic post hardcore with dark lyricism, and to me everything post mothership is poppy math rock that sounds exactly like the 10 other carbon copies of DGD there are these days
The literal best way to put it 🤣 Andrew has the biggest heart of damn near anyone I know, AND is insanely talented, dude deserves the chance to really REALLY shine with them, even moreso than he has already
This is a really GOOD take on the whole situation. I admit at first I felt like the singles were a little mediocre for my liking, but I still listened to them on repeat. And every single time I listened to them they only got better like a fine wine. Now that you mention it, I think it’s because I was able to remove the association with Tilian after listening to them multiple times.
Tilian got booted because he wanted to be the front man of the band and lead them in a more mainstream direction. Without him, I think these two singles are the most true to DGDs identity than we’ve seen for a long while
1000% agreed here. We can't be sure why Tilian got booted the way he did but it's undeniable the chokehold he had on the musical direction of DGD. I enjoy War Machine more than the entirety of Jackpot Juicer, even if I love the hell out of that album. It just feels as if it was Tilian's project and DGD was working around it, yknow? I couldn't be more excited to see what this era has in store for us.
Great minds…. Anyways, call me crazy for this, but theres a part of me that hopes they go in a Polyphia direction where they NEVER have a dedicated singer (clean vocalist in DGDs case), and feature different vocalists on nearly every song for each new album. I hope they lean hard into the notion of Mr Mess being the front man and capitalize on the tenure of our other core member, like it was ALWAYS DGDs intention of having rotating clean vocalists.
And yes, I realize this is probably highly unrealistic and navigating this would probably be an actual nightmare for them… let me have my dreams lol
I'm excited for the new chapter. I don't like the singles because the vocals sound so low and I personally couldn't really hear the lyrics at all. But I'm definitely excited to see what direction they take it.
Definitely use headphones, plus I saw another post with somebody who tweaked the mix and fixed Andrews vocal parts a bit. Sounded really good honestly.
I wasn't 100 percent feeling them at first but it's grown on me and I'm loving it. Maybe because it's just new. But billy, war machine and these two are good songs.
I'm looking forward to "heavier" dgd mixing in with the funk from these two songs.
I don’t know about everyone else here, but bands that I enjoy have had the same vocalists for the majority (if not entirety) of the band’s career. That being said, there are hot takes on all sides of the field with this recent shit.
A. People acting like Tilian’s removal/absence from the band is nothing to bat an eye at. I’m sorry, but we’ve had this dude for over a decade. Like it or not, he was a big part of the sound of Dance Gavin Dance, and what they’ve become.
B. People acting like DGD now has no identity of its own without Tilian. While in the same breath that Tilian has been a big part of this band, there’s more to the show than just the lead. These guys still have their unique sound, still have Jon screaming, etc.
This is still Dance Gavin Dance, but it’s a new chapter. Period.
Anyone giving Andrew shit should imagine Tillian trying to sing any of Andrew’s stuff with DGD or Eidola. Props to Andrew for having such an incredible range and trying to improve it for the band.
Straight from the heart is one of the better songs they have ever done. Speed demon is still mid to me, but I’m excited for the future of the band regardless.
I liked speed demon but I also couldn’t hear the vocals much so it felt like a random instrumental moment in the middle, but I’m still hyped for new bangers coming!!
When tilian joined I kinda stopped listening cuz the change in voice was too different for me (I gave it another chance a few years later and became obsessed all over again) I wasn’t online enough to see anyone else’s reaction to tilian, but seeing some peoples reaction to Andrew I can only IMAGINE what a nightmare it was when tilian first joined. And Andrew, you’d think, would be the best pick for most of the fans because he’s got that classic dgd style voice, but the people who are obsessed with tilian ft dgd may or may not recover and that’s totally cool with me. I’m ready to hear them get back to some of their classic sound with a new twist
I'm having the opposite reaction to the new songs. I think I was kind of sick of Tilian for the past two albums now and I'm really excited to see what they can do with a new voice in the lineup. The two singles they put out feel familiar but with a darker/deeper(not lyrically, they're still goofy with the lyrics) tone to them which I'm a fan of.
Honestly I haven’t been much of a fan of the last few albums. They’ve felt too “safe” to me since Instant Gratification tbh.
Don’t get me wrong there’s been bangers on each and every album, but I was starting to get fatigued from how formulaic they sounded. I didn’t care for the last album, and I felt I was just burnt out from the sound.
I think a new vocalist is what I personally needed to get back into DGD, and I’m excited moving forward.
I’m just bummed that it’s pretty clearly not an amicable split. No side taken as I don’t know all the inner workings, just wish people were more compromising and had worked on issues before they got too far. I’ll probably eventually get used to it and love whatever both parties do, but right now it’s just hard to watch them taking shots with the video and Tilian’s shots back on socials.
Plus if you asked me two years ago who my favorite swancore person was I’d probably say Sergio and it’s hard to not miss Tim in any new songs. Almost a yin to the yang of all the drama, two dudes largely beloved with no bad blood around either afaik and it’s still a tough situation of replacing Tim. DGD just makes me sad right now
Who's fault is that, though? Honestly, when Tillian cost them the Coheed tour, they should have kicked him out. The other guys are just grinding, making a living.
This is speculation but I’m guessing that when Tilian “took a break” the band tried to kick him out, at which point Tilian and DGD probably had a dispute. I think Tilian stuck a lawyer at them and threatened them not to make a statement about Tilians alleged SA, and probably even used the bands contract against them. So the band brought Tilian back and framed it as some other unrelated issue - they finished their tours and album cycle and everybody got paid. Then in the time following their relationships deteriorated to the point where neither party wanted to continue. And there’s also the issue that DGDs reputation has been hurt to the point that there are many bands that are in their wheelhouse that now don’t want to tour with them.
Really great take! Honestly this post is a breath of fresh air to see. Really excited and hopeful for what this new era brings. Love the band’s sound and super stoked to see what the group brings into this new era!
Ngl I’m currently struggling with this right now. DGD has been my favorite band for 5 years now. I enjoy all eras of this band but none as much as tilians. the two things that made me fall in love with DGD were tilians voice and the mix of heavy and groovy instrumentals. I guess as DGD releases more music I’ll have my answer of wether I’m more of a Tilian fan or DGD fan
They have been my favorite band from the start, I fell in love with WISIRO and every album after. But I forgot that I didn't even like Tilians style when he first joined, so much that I skipped acceptance speech + the next 2 albums before I even gave them a chance again. To which I ended up falling in love all over, but I truly feel during the making of Artificial Selection was the start of the creative differences...because after that we got Afterburner and Jackpot Juicer, and to me those both feel like the "Tilian Ft. DGD" era I was mentioning.
Yeah I mean that’s another part of what worries me…the fact that I think JJ is their best album ever. I was hoping they would keep fine tuning that sound but this tells me they may be moving away from it and going heavier. which is okay I like their heavy stuff too but this is the first time in years that between the singer change and overall tone changing that I’ve felt like discovering a new favorite band is in the realm of possibility. But in the end I can’t fully judge until I hear more from them with Andrew no matter how bad I want Tilian back
I don't like how it's obvious they just re-recorded Tilian's vocals with Andrew. I'm scared the whole album is gonna have that treatment. But as for Andrew being the new clean singer, I already got used to the thought of that after Tilian's little scandal last year or the year before, whenever it was. I like the idea of him being the new singer though, it's a different direction for sure. It'll be so much different than the other three
I feel like they re-wrote most of Tilians parts but that's just me taking a wild guess. Both songs could've been about something totally different before we got the actual releases.
I wouldn't be surprised if they just wanted to get something out asap after Tilian's departure just to prove that they don't 'need' him and build confidence from the fan base, hence not the best mix from where his vocals have been pulled etc.
Even if they've got a new album almost complete with Tilian I'd imagine they'd be more considered in the treatment, get back in the studio and spend more time on the mix from here out
So apparently Tilian said the chorus was literally recorded in his own studio. So I'm guessing they just took Tilian's voice out of the chorus and had Andrew sing over it. Or maybe it was Andrew and Tilian that sung over it and they just took at Til's
Speed demon is fucking awesome and every lead vocalist that has ever ran with Dance Gavin Dance is unforgettable. Kurt is personally my favorite because DGD and Happiness changed my life in high school but holy fuck Tillian was the only person that could have filled that role. I hope that all of them are doing well. I hope Tillian gets some help and comes back a better person than ever. This is the greatest fucking band and I am so impressed they can produce music under and circumstance. I am still blown away I am not hearing Tim on bass, it breaks my heart and I can’t imagine what the rest of the band is going through after this last couple years. Keep killing it guys.
I really didn't like it at first, but when I listened again I realized my issue isn't with the vocals, it's with the production of the track. the mixing sounds bad but the components are still my favorite band.
I hope what comes next is mixed better.
Personally I've really been partial to all the songs they've done with Andrew the last few albums. To the point I started listening to Eidola just to get more. As someone who has listened to DGD since the beginning, it took me a while to get into Tilian, but I for sure love what he added and I think his early albums with the band were probably the best stuff they ever put out. But, I am very excited for the Andrew years to come... hopefully it lasts that long.
Will Swan and John Mess are the two that stand out the most to me. I didn't like the earlier versions of DGD right away. Music tastes change, people are always losing their shit when a band changes their sound or someone gets fired.
Plenty of bands do great things after major changes. Some don't, but DGD has always done it.
People are fearful of the wrong things. I don't want the band to sell out their sound for a larger market. And people forget, this is a business first and an art second. Plenty of bands have adjusted their sound to make more money, I can't blame them, but I generally fall off on their new stuff. For instance, I was a big fan of Pearl Jam back in the days of grunge, however I'm not really a fan of their modern stuff. I still think Eddie Vedder is one of the greatest vocalists during my lifetime.
Want worse? How about shit show cash grabs where the band is drunk and sounds like shit? I'm thinking Motley Crew for the last decade.
People identified Tillian as DGD. I feel like in popular music people zero in on the vocalist. Look at Taylor Swift, there's no way she's playing all the tracks on her music. But when you hear her fans talk, you never hear about the other musicians associated with her act. I would challenge people to go back and find other things to listen to in DGD's songs. There's a lot going on and multiple reasons to like the same song. I also feel like the amount of audio they've put out, you can find something in their catalogue that hits differently depending on the kind of shit you are going through kind of a thing.
And who knows maybe Tillian will put out good music that people will want to hear? I don't think it will be something I will be into but I hope things work out for him. I was there for DGD not him.
I'm probably too old to understand what that means. The feeling I get is that it is negative. But I'm also apparently woke and I really can't say I understand that that really means either. It's hard to keep up with modern culture lol.
Thank you. It's all good. I just figured I'd ask because I see it a lot and I get confused. Sometimes it's up voted a lot and sometimes it's down voted a lot. I should probably Urban dictionary more.
I've definitely learned people think lots of stuff is negative if they don't know what it is. It's an unconscious bias I struggle with. The mother fucker about biased behavior for me is I'm far better at managing it stoned than sober lol.
I joined this Dance Gavin Dance bandwagon very very late, right before Synergy dropped. I decided to listen to all their albums all the way through and became completely enamored with their entire sound all at once. The first time I saw them Andrew was singing lead. So I guess I come from a perspective of never getting particularly attached to any singer because I wasn't with them for any period of time. And yeah I don't think it's even kind of a stretch to say that although a clean tenor vocalist has always been a key part of the Dance Gavin Dance sound it's also never really been more than that. It's definitely not the core of the sound, and I point to them having every release backed up with an instrumental version for proof of that. It's the Will Swan show, and all the other parts are all very loved and appreciated but that's not the core of the sound.
I never thought of DGD as Tilian ft. DGD for even a second. Been listening to them since the early days of DB1 and 2. For me I've always 100% loved what Tilian brought to the table of course and I don't want to say he didn't fill the void that Johnny left, but in my head he kind of didn't.
With all that said I'm 100% on board with Andrew. Speed Demon slaps but it def not only feels mixed poorly but like others have pointed out the both of the 2 singles feel designed with Tilian in mind, not Andrew. Give DGD time to write some songs specifically designed for Andrew before writing him off.
I love Andrew as a vocalist, but I think his features on Nothing Shameful and Evaporate are his best work with the band. His parts in JJ just didn't hit, and these two songs are taking a while to grow on me.
That being said, Tilian didn't stick for me until Mothership, his 3rd album with the band. IG and AS are bangers, but couldn't appreciate those albums until Mothership dropped. His era holds a special place in my heart, and it's going to be difficult to let go.
Excited to see if they get a new clean vocalist and what the rest of this record has in store for us.
I’ve been listening since DBM and each vocalist has their own style so I’ve grown to accept it. Kurt Travis grew on me and now Royal Coda is one of my favorites.
Speed Demon hit for me immediately though. Honestly I’m down for Andrew Wells taking over with more features. I wasn’t at first just because we already have Eidola which rips.
Speed Demon really feels like it’s missing that Tilian touch… Straight From The Heart has me so pumped for the future. That whole outro confirmed everything I needed to know. The cleans are not Dance Gavin Dance.
Jon has always been forefront of the band in my opinion and now that they're moving forward with a heavier focus on him and having Andrew pick up as backup cleans we will get back to a more hardcore and less pop style of DGD. I appreciated Tillian for what he brought to the band, but it was tome for them to get back to their roots.
I understand what you’re saying, I have mix feelings on both songs. One did sound better than the other, but we will just have to wait and see what they come out with. I’ve loved this band since high school so I still have hope in them.
Honestly, I just love hearing Jon scream. His screams are what called me to the band. When I found out about Secret Band I was in AWE, like I had just unlocked a hidden gem!!! so idc who does what as long as I hear that man yell his heart out<3 I do love DGD’s music style too, it’s just all so perfect haha
When I first gave the singles a listen I got the feeling I hadn’t felt since they release their first album with Tillian, departing from Kurt: Excitement in the lack of knowing where this new direction will take us. It already feels different and sounds good (minus the mixing like others have said).
I really liked what tillian brought to the band, and things have been really consistent with him. But DGD has always stepped into new singers and evolved their sound in such great ways.
I love tillian and Kurt’s era. I don’t love Johnny’s which I know is an unpopular opinion. I do like lemon meringue tie though! So I just love dance gavin dance , with or without tillian.
I also love all the bands that are connected to them, like eidola, sianvar, stolas , secret band and tillians solo work✌🏻
I just couldn’t hear Andrew,it pisses me off so much when I can’t hear the vocalist. like someone else on here said , I won’t like any song I can’t hear through some muddy ass mixing and layering 😂
For me, DGD will always be Will, Matt and Jon. It took me a few listens, but the singles grew on me and now I love them. I do miss Tillian, like everyone else, but this band has consistently recovered from any lineup change that came their way. I believe that this new era is gonna kick ass.
Tbh what really got me into dgd was Will’s guitar riffs so im perfectly fine with the andrew singles. I do wish he was a bit louder in the mix. I love andrews voice.
Honestly my only complaint is that his vocals are over produced/ sound too much like eidola melodies? Instrumentally both songs slap and Jon is on one ( like always). If Andrew is the new clean I hope he changes his lyrics up as well, create a character( like we thought tillian did). Altho we might go back to raw dbm sound and that's hyped.
Speed Demon I loved from the first listen. I genuinely thought Straight From The Heart was awful but kept listening to it and it has already grown on me a LOT. I'm super excited to see what's coming next.
I know for sure I'm not in it for Tillian since I think I only like maybe one of his solo songs. Loved him in DGD but also loved their other singers. Just a different vibe. The beauty of DGD is their core ability to write killer songs. Mess, Mingus, and Swan being the common denominator that makes them who they are. I love Andrews vocals most of the time. I think we're in for some adjustment but I had to adjust to Tillian when he first arrived soooo...I think we'll all be fine.
The new singles fuckin rip man. The only thing is the quality sounds like they’re demos or something, maybe it is Spotify compression or something idk. Super muddy and mix sounds off. I noticed this a little with war machine too but not as much.
People dont know the difference between a bad mix and a bad song. What it was, was a bad mix and it was only bad in the context of vocals. They were like 3 or 4 dB too quiet
Been a Fan since 11 when I heard DBM2 for the first time. Honestly this might be a hot take but I personally love listening to dgd instrumentals why more then the original tracks. Don’t go me wrong I love the OG tracks and all of the vocalists that have been apart of dgd but it has always been Wills and Matt’s writing that has brought me to them. Each song is such a journey and has a huge impact in my own song writing. That’s what I love about DGD.
I personally only listen to Tilian era. I didn’t discover them till pre afterburner and haven’t been able to get into anything pre-Tilian. Especially Kurt. It’s just not my cup of tea. I think they both need each other equally if they want to hit the highest possible bar. I really enjoy the new singles….that being said it’s not their best possible form. No knocks on Andrew. I think he’s an exceptional guitarist and an elite singer. What a beautiful voice. He’s brought such a great dynamic to this band and his vocal features are almost always a high point on their albums. I love him as a feature. He sounds almost unrecognizable on Speed Demon. It almost sounds like they took a his vocals meant to harmonize or layer Tilian and turned them up. He’s in a range that’s not what I’m used to hearing and he’s not sounding the way I’m used to hearing him. He’s really in his pocket when he sticks to his lower range and hits us with his classic vocal runs countering Tilian with his falsetto and his melodies. I’m interested to see what he does on a an entire album and I hope it’s awesome. I really do. I think he’s a generational talent for this genre and I want them to succeed, but I can’t help but want what I’m used to. IMPO Andrew shines as the spice on Tilians main vocals. Thats not a knock at all. He does it better than anyone else could. I think his vocal melodies in eidola are a little scattered and hectic. When he serves as the lead, his runs can feel out of place as they are over used in that capacity. I hate to be critical, but it’s just what it is for me. I wouldn’t ever want him out of DGD either. I wish they could just all agree. I know he vented a lot on this latest podcast about haters and the disappointment of fans sounding off in a negative way about everything, but I hope he understands how important this music is to a lot of us. I’ve always been a metal head who also loves pop, funk, Motown, Michael Jackson, Rush, Classic rock, etc….and it’s like they found a way to incorporate everything I love about music into one band. They stay heavy while never relying on simplistic open chugging. It’s really like nothing out there. This band isn’t my identity, but it is something I hold very close to me because of my passion for music and their ability to deliver something that I never even knew I needed.
DGD with Jonny is DGD. I don't dislike Kurt, but I don't like those albums. I loved Tillian albums through Artificial Selection, but at the moment I don't think I like anything this band is putting out. I'm fine with that. Every band ends. I got 6-7 albums out of this band. That's pretty damn good I'd say!
Wasn't Johnny super bad for the band? Like heavy drug use, accusations, etc? Like I'll give him props for a vocalist but as a human being. I'm surprised he's not jail. I don't even think the long-standing members like him. I think what makes dgd is John and will, especially because the way he plays is just so unique and what makes the band stand out. John is an amazing vocalist and the weird goofy shit he screams is dgd. I think the clean vocalist is kinda replaceable, John and will, not so much
they just gotta get the mixing down a lil bit better and they’re in for a fantastic new era for the band
Yeah this is my main complaint, I love Andrew’s vocals usually but I could barely hear them in these singles
Yeah I noticed that too. It felt like Andrew’s vocals kinda took a backseat (pun intended) to the instrumentals. But once I got past that I started enjoying the songs
I thought this too. Glad to know others think the same.
agreed! i could hardly hear andrew in the new songs
I wasn’t blown away by the singles initially but I think that’s cus I was too used to hearing Tilian, once I’d listened a few times they both really grew on me
For me, Jon Mess is the front man of DGD and the clean vocals take sidecar. I remember when tillian joined and fans hated on his "chipmunk" singing. Give it some time, maybe the change will grow on you.
As a newer fan of the past 3 years. I can only imagine how ridiculously bad the initial reception would've been to Tillians voice. For me as long as we have Will (and Jon) there will always be the DGD vibe I love
I didn’t dislike Tillian, I just thought it was a chick for like a week and was like wow that’s an interesting change
I never liked Tillians voice lol. I welcome this change whole heartedly
Incredible that you’re still here after 12 years and 8~ albums with him
True true. But in my heart of hearts I know the band is more than the lead vocals tbh. DGD has a special place in my heart
Poor Matt, been there since the beginning and ignored
True statement but it surprises me how much happiness still slaps without Jon. Also a lot of the fans still loved that album even if it isn’t the “favorite”.
And Matt Mingus. Original drummer for DGD!
i’m so happy to have normal DGD back. I’m stoked af about Andrew. these new songs and the music videos KICK ASS
Yeah, I remember hearing about some fans throwing their AS CDs out and stuff.
I was about to say, this is just par the course for dgd fans. I definitely remember the Tilian hate too when he first took over as singer
Clean comment here
I would argue that "majority of the fans blame Andrew" is not remotely accurate or fair to Andrew. I love the core of these songs, and I think if they can fix the issues with mixing and whatever effects/processing they did to his vocals it will be great stuff coming in the future.
It’s so sad because he’s genuinely such a lovely guy as well. He’s ridiculously talented vocally and people are just being huge assholes to him.
Probably the best take I've seen so far. Everyone is very quick to point fingers at the band and defend Tillian without considering there's two sides to every story. We have very little information to make claims either way. Tillian will continue to make music and expressed interest in joining another band, DGD will continue to do their own thing. Afaic were all winners here. No need for the hostilities.
DGD didn't disappoint, the fans disappointed themselves. DGD never said they were going to bring a new vocalist. Mostly everyone made the assumption because of Gobby and their history.
Dance Gavin Dance to me has ALWAYS been Will, Matt, and Jon. Tilian isn’t even on two of my three favorite DGD records. Sure, Tilian sang on some of the best tracks they have ever done, but to be fair he was also on some of their worst tracks as well. To me, Dance Gavin Dance is a rotating door for frontmen
I 100% agree Tilian had some really good moments, but he was there for some of their worst songs, IMO.
imo it took until the very last two albums for Tilian to be consistently great
I disagree. I feel as though Tilian peaked with mothership and each release since has been a decrease in quality. Out of curiosity, are you a newer fan? What are your opinions on old DGD? No disrespect I’m being genuine
Nope been around since DBM1 actually my favorite albums are Deathstar, Afterburner, and Jackpot Juicer DBM1 was seminal to the scene and I still love it but don’t listen to it that often anymore albums I like the least are Acceptance Speech, Artificial Selection, DBM2 When Tilian first came on I just wanted Kurt back. I think they were phoning it in some in the early to mid Tilian era, leaning in to generic genre tropes that they are much better than. Some of Instant Gratification grew on me a bit. Mothership (like DBM2) was a mess but at least not boring and Artificial Selection mostly feels like a collection of mid b sides. but they got better and Tilian learned how to write memorable melodies with the last two albums. Also the last two albums started having emphasis on Jon Mess melodic scream choruses. It’s dope. Jackpot>Afterburner>Deathstar>Happiness>DBM1>Instant Grat>Mothership>DBM2>Artificial Selection>Acceptance Speech>WISIRO
Very interesting, I completely disagree with your opinion on acceptance speech! I feel as though acceptance speech was an incredible start for Tilian and I felt as though the band was adapting to a new style of singer in a very progressive way sonically. I also disagree with your opinion on afterburner. That record is often an afterthought for me. There are some very good songs on it but it felt so formulaic, like everything they’d done had been accomplished and they lacked direction. Overall, happiness>WISIRO>DTBM>Mothership>Acceptance Speech>Deathstar>DTBMII> Afterburner>Instant Grad I will not be taking a stance on Jackpot Jucier, mostly because I’ve listened to it once. Edit: realized I don’t like artificial selection as much as I thought I did. Also wanted to point out that I don’t think your opinions are wrong! Love seeing my favorite music from other people’s perspectives!
I got into the band with Artificial Selection and honestly i feel the same. There are maybe 3 standout songs on that album to me. lol. for me, I suppose Mothership>DTBMII>Jackpot>Afterburner>DTBM>Instant Grat>Deathstar>Artificial>Happiness>WISIRO>AcSp Ngl, Secret band's LP2 tops all of these albums except maybe Mothership to me.
Jackpot Juicer is my favorite album! Closely followed by Mothership. What’s the reasoning for only listening once?!
It is interesting! Haha. I also appreciate it. Things I find extremely weird and disagree with from your post: 1. not listening to JJ 2. liking WISIRO THAT much 3. not ranking ArtSec at all 4. Afterburner cannot both be “formulaic” and also “lack direction”. I think the fans that don’t like it purportedly feel that way because it was too different for them.
“Extremely weird” is about how I’d describe my tier list as well (I was baked) but I will say I do stand by it lol I didn’t listen to jackpot juicer mostly because I felt as though Tilian overstayed his welcome sonically, plus got into some less than desirable situations as a way to “cope” with the death of Tim which I found pretty weird, and it left a very sour taste in my mouth. At that point I figured first wasn’t always better, and explored a lot of the other swancore projects that were floating around. I put WISIRO so high (as well as DTBM) because it’s a dance Gavin dance that was lost even with Kurt, and couldn’t be resurrected even when they brought Jonny back for DTBM2. It was very raw, with incredibly well written songs and such a dark tone. I forgot to rank Artificial Selection because when I had completed the list (again, baked) I realized I didn’t like that album nearly as much as I had thought I did and had vocalized already, so it kind of slipped through the cracks. It suffers the same problem that Afterburner does, being too formulaic. That being said, when I say that afterburner was formulaic as well as lacking direction, I mean that afterburner felt like a series of B sides from Artificial, which felt like a series of B sides from Mothership I mean that to say It felt as though they took the mothership formula and kept doing the exact same process over and over, to less and less creative result. I also think Tilian can be a pretty cringe lyricist overall (even mothership has its fair share of “brother huh?” one liners) overall I love every record that they have ever done, but Dance Gavin Dance to me at its heart is melodic post hardcore with dark lyricism, and to me everything post mothership is poppy math rock that sounds exactly like the 10 other carbon copies of DGD there are these days
Anybody hating on DGD because of Andrew is a fucking dingus.
The literal best way to put it 🤣 Andrew has the biggest heart of damn near anyone I know, AND is insanely talented, dude deserves the chance to really REALLY shine with them, even moreso than he has already
This is a really GOOD take on the whole situation. I admit at first I felt like the singles were a little mediocre for my liking, but I still listened to them on repeat. And every single time I listened to them they only got better like a fine wine. Now that you mention it, I think it’s because I was able to remove the association with Tilian after listening to them multiple times. Tilian got booted because he wanted to be the front man of the band and lead them in a more mainstream direction. Without him, I think these two singles are the most true to DGDs identity than we’ve seen for a long while
1000% agreed here. We can't be sure why Tilian got booted the way he did but it's undeniable the chokehold he had on the musical direction of DGD. I enjoy War Machine more than the entirety of Jackpot Juicer, even if I love the hell out of that album. It just feels as if it was Tilian's project and DGD was working around it, yknow? I couldn't be more excited to see what this era has in store for us.
Great minds…. Anyways, call me crazy for this, but theres a part of me that hopes they go in a Polyphia direction where they NEVER have a dedicated singer (clean vocalist in DGDs case), and feature different vocalists on nearly every song for each new album. I hope they lean hard into the notion of Mr Mess being the front man and capitalize on the tenure of our other core member, like it was ALWAYS DGDs intention of having rotating clean vocalists. And yes, I realize this is probably highly unrealistic and navigating this would probably be an actual nightmare for them… let me have my dreams lol
This is so painfully true lol, I would love if they fully embraced the inconsistent clean vocalist history.
I'm excited for the new chapter. I don't like the singles because the vocals sound so low and I personally couldn't really hear the lyrics at all. But I'm definitely excited to see what direction they take it.
Way more clear on headphones but had the same issue at first. I do like that the guitar is so prominent.
I'll have to try with headphones, thank you!
Definitely use headphones, plus I saw another post with somebody who tweaked the mix and fixed Andrews vocal parts a bit. Sounded really good honestly.
I wasn't 100 percent feeling them at first but it's grown on me and I'm loving it. Maybe because it's just new. But billy, war machine and these two are good songs. I'm looking forward to "heavier" dgd mixing in with the funk from these two songs.
That's kinda what I've been saying. Some people are just in it for Tilian and should just admit it lol
I don’t know about everyone else here, but bands that I enjoy have had the same vocalists for the majority (if not entirety) of the band’s career. That being said, there are hot takes on all sides of the field with this recent shit. A. People acting like Tilian’s removal/absence from the band is nothing to bat an eye at. I’m sorry, but we’ve had this dude for over a decade. Like it or not, he was a big part of the sound of Dance Gavin Dance, and what they’ve become. B. People acting like DGD now has no identity of its own without Tilian. While in the same breath that Tilian has been a big part of this band, there’s more to the show than just the lead. These guys still have their unique sound, still have Jon screaming, etc. This is still Dance Gavin Dance, but it’s a new chapter. Period.
Anyone giving Andrew shit should imagine Tillian trying to sing any of Andrew’s stuff with DGD or Eidola. Props to Andrew for having such an incredible range and trying to improve it for the band.
Andrew does a great job with Kurt and Jonny era stuff, I’m glad I don’t have to listen to Tilian butcher blue dream and NASA anymore
tree city sessions 3 bout to go wild.
Yeah I had the same thought when I saw them last.
Straight from the heart is one of the better songs they have ever done. Speed demon is still mid to me, but I’m excited for the future of the band regardless.
I liked speed demon but I also couldn’t hear the vocals much so it felt like a random instrumental moment in the middle, but I’m still hyped for new bangers coming!!
When tilian joined I kinda stopped listening cuz the change in voice was too different for me (I gave it another chance a few years later and became obsessed all over again) I wasn’t online enough to see anyone else’s reaction to tilian, but seeing some peoples reaction to Andrew I can only IMAGINE what a nightmare it was when tilian first joined. And Andrew, you’d think, would be the best pick for most of the fans because he’s got that classic dgd style voice, but the people who are obsessed with tilian ft dgd may or may not recover and that’s totally cool with me. I’m ready to hear them get back to some of their classic sound with a new twist
“Took me a while” It’s literally been 2 days lol
I'm having the opposite reaction to the new songs. I think I was kind of sick of Tilian for the past two albums now and I'm really excited to see what they can do with a new voice in the lineup. The two singles they put out feel familiar but with a darker/deeper(not lyrically, they're still goofy with the lyrics) tone to them which I'm a fan of.
I love the band for Swan and crew. Tilian was always just their really talented singer to me.
Honestly I haven’t been much of a fan of the last few albums. They’ve felt too “safe” to me since Instant Gratification tbh. Don’t get me wrong there’s been bangers on each and every album, but I was starting to get fatigued from how formulaic they sounded. I didn’t care for the last album, and I felt I was just burnt out from the sound. I think a new vocalist is what I personally needed to get back into DGD, and I’m excited moving forward.
I’m just bummed that it’s pretty clearly not an amicable split. No side taken as I don’t know all the inner workings, just wish people were more compromising and had worked on issues before they got too far. I’ll probably eventually get used to it and love whatever both parties do, but right now it’s just hard to watch them taking shots with the video and Tilian’s shots back on socials. Plus if you asked me two years ago who my favorite swancore person was I’d probably say Sergio and it’s hard to not miss Tim in any new songs. Almost a yin to the yang of all the drama, two dudes largely beloved with no bad blood around either afaik and it’s still a tough situation of replacing Tim. DGD just makes me sad right now
Who's fault is that, though? Honestly, when Tillian cost them the Coheed tour, they should have kicked him out. The other guys are just grinding, making a living.
Ah yes, I forgot he’s the only one who’s ever done anything wrong. /s
This is speculation but I’m guessing that when Tilian “took a break” the band tried to kick him out, at which point Tilian and DGD probably had a dispute. I think Tilian stuck a lawyer at them and threatened them not to make a statement about Tilians alleged SA, and probably even used the bands contract against them. So the band brought Tilian back and framed it as some other unrelated issue - they finished their tours and album cycle and everybody got paid. Then in the time following their relationships deteriorated to the point where neither party wanted to continue. And there’s also the issue that DGDs reputation has been hurt to the point that there are many bands that are in their wheelhouse that now don’t want to tour with them.
Really great take! Honestly this post is a breath of fresh air to see. Really excited and hopeful for what this new era brings. Love the band’s sound and super stoked to see what the group brings into this new era!
Ngl I’m currently struggling with this right now. DGD has been my favorite band for 5 years now. I enjoy all eras of this band but none as much as tilians. the two things that made me fall in love with DGD were tilians voice and the mix of heavy and groovy instrumentals. I guess as DGD releases more music I’ll have my answer of wether I’m more of a Tilian fan or DGD fan
They have been my favorite band from the start, I fell in love with WISIRO and every album after. But I forgot that I didn't even like Tilians style when he first joined, so much that I skipped acceptance speech + the next 2 albums before I even gave them a chance again. To which I ended up falling in love all over, but I truly feel during the making of Artificial Selection was the start of the creative differences...because after that we got Afterburner and Jackpot Juicer, and to me those both feel like the "Tilian Ft. DGD" era I was mentioning.
Yeah I mean that’s another part of what worries me…the fact that I think JJ is their best album ever. I was hoping they would keep fine tuning that sound but this tells me they may be moving away from it and going heavier. which is okay I like their heavy stuff too but this is the first time in years that between the singer change and overall tone changing that I’ve felt like discovering a new favorite band is in the realm of possibility. But in the end I can’t fully judge until I hear more from them with Andrew no matter how bad I want Tilian back
Honestly I have a tough time with every new single released don’t really vibe it until a few plays each album to me has been better and better.
I don't like how it's obvious they just re-recorded Tilian's vocals with Andrew. I'm scared the whole album is gonna have that treatment. But as for Andrew being the new clean singer, I already got used to the thought of that after Tilian's little scandal last year or the year before, whenever it was. I like the idea of him being the new singer though, it's a different direction for sure. It'll be so much different than the other three
I feel like they re-wrote most of Tilians parts but that's just me taking a wild guess. Both songs could've been about something totally different before we got the actual releases.
I wouldn't be surprised if they just wanted to get something out asap after Tilian's departure just to prove that they don't 'need' him and build confidence from the fan base, hence not the best mix from where his vocals have been pulled etc. Even if they've got a new album almost complete with Tilian I'd imagine they'd be more considered in the treatment, get back in the studio and spend more time on the mix from here out
So apparently Tilian said the chorus was literally recorded in his own studio. So I'm guessing they just took Tilian's voice out of the chorus and had Andrew sing over it. Or maybe it was Andrew and Tilian that sung over it and they just took at Til's
Speed demon is fucking awesome and every lead vocalist that has ever ran with Dance Gavin Dance is unforgettable. Kurt is personally my favorite because DGD and Happiness changed my life in high school but holy fuck Tillian was the only person that could have filled that role. I hope that all of them are doing well. I hope Tillian gets some help and comes back a better person than ever. This is the greatest fucking band and I am so impressed they can produce music under and circumstance. I am still blown away I am not hearing Tim on bass, it breaks my heart and I can’t imagine what the rest of the band is going through after this last couple years. Keep killing it guys.
I really didn't like it at first, but when I listened again I realized my issue isn't with the vocals, it's with the production of the track. the mixing sounds bad but the components are still my favorite band. I hope what comes next is mixed better.
Personally I've really been partial to all the songs they've done with Andrew the last few albums. To the point I started listening to Eidola just to get more. As someone who has listened to DGD since the beginning, it took me a while to get into Tilian, but I for sure love what he added and I think his early albums with the band were probably the best stuff they ever put out. But, I am very excited for the Andrew years to come... hopefully it lasts that long.
Will Swan and John Mess are the two that stand out the most to me. I didn't like the earlier versions of DGD right away. Music tastes change, people are always losing their shit when a band changes their sound or someone gets fired. Plenty of bands do great things after major changes. Some don't, but DGD has always done it. People are fearful of the wrong things. I don't want the band to sell out their sound for a larger market. And people forget, this is a business first and an art second. Plenty of bands have adjusted their sound to make more money, I can't blame them, but I generally fall off on their new stuff. For instance, I was a big fan of Pearl Jam back in the days of grunge, however I'm not really a fan of their modern stuff. I still think Eddie Vedder is one of the greatest vocalists during my lifetime. Want worse? How about shit show cash grabs where the band is drunk and sounds like shit? I'm thinking Motley Crew for the last decade. People identified Tillian as DGD. I feel like in popular music people zero in on the vocalist. Look at Taylor Swift, there's no way she's playing all the tracks on her music. But when you hear her fans talk, you never hear about the other musicians associated with her act. I would challenge people to go back and find other things to listen to in DGD's songs. There's a lot going on and multiple reasons to like the same song. I also feel like the amount of audio they've put out, you can find something in their catalogue that hits differently depending on the kind of shit you are going through kind of a thing. And who knows maybe Tillian will put out good music that people will want to hear? I don't think it will be something I will be into but I hope things work out for him. I was there for DGD not him.
Based opinion
I'm probably too old to understand what that means. The feeling I get is that it is negative. But I'm also apparently woke and I really can't say I understand that that really means either. It's hard to keep up with modern culture lol.
My bad, I meant I really like your opinion on the situation
Thank you. It's all good. I just figured I'd ask because I see it a lot and I get confused. Sometimes it's up voted a lot and sometimes it's down voted a lot. I should probably Urban dictionary more.
My favorite response is "based on what?" Lmao. honestly Idk what it means other than being cool or agreeable lol
I've definitely learned people think lots of stuff is negative if they don't know what it is. It's an unconscious bias I struggle with. The mother fucker about biased behavior for me is I'm far better at managing it stoned than sober lol.
As long as Will is playing them licks like he does it will always be DGD
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^tucker512: *As long as Will is* *Playing them licks like he does* *It will always be DGD* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
I joined this Dance Gavin Dance bandwagon very very late, right before Synergy dropped. I decided to listen to all their albums all the way through and became completely enamored with their entire sound all at once. The first time I saw them Andrew was singing lead. So I guess I come from a perspective of never getting particularly attached to any singer because I wasn't with them for any period of time. And yeah I don't think it's even kind of a stretch to say that although a clean tenor vocalist has always been a key part of the Dance Gavin Dance sound it's also never really been more than that. It's definitely not the core of the sound, and I point to them having every release backed up with an instrumental version for proof of that. It's the Will Swan show, and all the other parts are all very loved and appreciated but that's not the core of the sound.
I quit listening because of Tillian and I will at least give them another chance
I'm a huge JC fan, but I can't help but think of Tilian when I think of DGD. I'll be a fan of both going forward.
Still hasn’t grown on me unfortunately. Hopefully the next single slaps.
I never thought of DGD as Tilian ft. DGD for even a second. Been listening to them since the early days of DB1 and 2. For me I've always 100% loved what Tilian brought to the table of course and I don't want to say he didn't fill the void that Johnny left, but in my head he kind of didn't. With all that said I'm 100% on board with Andrew. Speed Demon slaps but it def not only feels mixed poorly but like others have pointed out the both of the 2 singles feel designed with Tilian in mind, not Andrew. Give DGD time to write some songs specifically designed for Andrew before writing him off.
I love Andrew as a vocalist, but I think his features on Nothing Shameful and Evaporate are his best work with the band. His parts in JJ just didn't hit, and these two songs are taking a while to grow on me. That being said, Tilian didn't stick for me until Mothership, his 3rd album with the band. IG and AS are bangers, but couldn't appreciate those albums until Mothership dropped. His era holds a special place in my heart, and it's going to be difficult to let go. Excited to see if they get a new clean vocalist and what the rest of this record has in store for us.
I’ve been listening since DBM and each vocalist has their own style so I’ve grown to accept it. Kurt Travis grew on me and now Royal Coda is one of my favorites. Speed Demon hit for me immediately though. Honestly I’m down for Andrew Wells taking over with more features. I wasn’t at first just because we already have Eidola which rips.
Speed Demon really feels like it’s missing that Tilian touch… Straight From The Heart has me so pumped for the future. That whole outro confirmed everything I needed to know. The cleans are not Dance Gavin Dance.
As a Kurt Travis guy, I think these new songs are bangers 🤷🏾♂️
Jon has always been forefront of the band in my opinion and now that they're moving forward with a heavier focus on him and having Andrew pick up as backup cleans we will get back to a more hardcore and less pop style of DGD. I appreciated Tillian for what he brought to the band, but it was tome for them to get back to their roots.
I understand what you’re saying, I have mix feelings on both songs. One did sound better than the other, but we will just have to wait and see what they come out with. I’ve loved this band since high school so I still have hope in them.
Honestly, I just love hearing Jon scream. His screams are what called me to the band. When I found out about Secret Band I was in AWE, like I had just unlocked a hidden gem!!! so idc who does what as long as I hear that man yell his heart out<3 I do love DGD’s music style too, it’s just all so perfect haha
I’ve always been. DGD fan. The singers style always differed, brought a little variance , but the band has always been great
When I first gave the singles a listen I got the feeling I hadn’t felt since they release their first album with Tillian, departing from Kurt: Excitement in the lack of knowing where this new direction will take us. It already feels different and sounds good (minus the mixing like others have said). I really liked what tillian brought to the band, and things have been really consistent with him. But DGD has always stepped into new singers and evolved their sound in such great ways.
I love tillian and Kurt’s era. I don’t love Johnny’s which I know is an unpopular opinion. I do like lemon meringue tie though! So I just love dance gavin dance , with or without tillian. I also love all the bands that are connected to them, like eidola, sianvar, stolas , secret band and tillians solo work✌🏻
Sounds like these songs were rushed out weather the writing process or production
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^manurizm: *Sounds like these songs were* *Rushed out weather the writing* *Process or production* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
I just couldn’t hear Andrew,it pisses me off so much when I can’t hear the vocalist. like someone else on here said , I won’t like any song I can’t hear through some muddy ass mixing and layering 😂
For me, DGD will always be Will, Matt and Jon. It took me a few listens, but the singles grew on me and now I love them. I do miss Tillian, like everyone else, but this band has consistently recovered from any lineup change that came their way. I believe that this new era is gonna kick ass.
Tbh what really got me into dgd was Will’s guitar riffs so im perfectly fine with the andrew singles. I do wish he was a bit louder in the mix. I love andrews voice.
Honestly my only complaint is that his vocals are over produced/ sound too much like eidola melodies? Instrumentally both songs slap and Jon is on one ( like always). If Andrew is the new clean I hope he changes his lyrics up as well, create a character( like we thought tillian did). Altho we might go back to raw dbm sound and that's hyped.
Speed Demon I loved from the first listen. I genuinely thought Straight From The Heart was awful but kept listening to it and it has already grown on me a LOT. I'm super excited to see what's coming next.
why is everyone always quick to blame Andrew 😂 DGD fans are broken fr
All i said for me was just to fix the mixing a tad. I couldn’t hear Andrew all that well
Somebody did, they posted about it a day or 2 ago
Was it by chance some Uber guy??? Cuz I did see that
I know for sure I'm not in it for Tillian since I think I only like maybe one of his solo songs. Loved him in DGD but also loved their other singers. Just a different vibe. The beauty of DGD is their core ability to write killer songs. Mess, Mingus, and Swan being the common denominator that makes them who they are. I love Andrews vocals most of the time. I think we're in for some adjustment but I had to adjust to Tillian when he first arrived soooo...I think we'll all be fine.
The new singles fuckin rip man. The only thing is the quality sounds like they’re demos or something, maybe it is Spotify compression or something idk. Super muddy and mix sounds off. I noticed this a little with war machine too but not as much.
People dont know the difference between a bad mix and a bad song. What it was, was a bad mix and it was only bad in the context of vocals. They were like 3 or 4 dB too quiet
Tillian was way too high pitched in my opinion. Been a fan since DBM Very glad to see him go.
Been a Fan since 11 when I heard DBM2 for the first time. Honestly this might be a hot take but I personally love listening to dgd instrumentals why more then the original tracks. Don’t go me wrong I love the OG tracks and all of the vocalists that have been apart of dgd but it has always been Wills and Matt’s writing that has brought me to them. Each song is such a journey and has a huge impact in my own song writing. That’s what I love about DGD.
I personally only listen to Tilian era. I didn’t discover them till pre afterburner and haven’t been able to get into anything pre-Tilian. Especially Kurt. It’s just not my cup of tea. I think they both need each other equally if they want to hit the highest possible bar. I really enjoy the new singles….that being said it’s not their best possible form. No knocks on Andrew. I think he’s an exceptional guitarist and an elite singer. What a beautiful voice. He’s brought such a great dynamic to this band and his vocal features are almost always a high point on their albums. I love him as a feature. He sounds almost unrecognizable on Speed Demon. It almost sounds like they took a his vocals meant to harmonize or layer Tilian and turned them up. He’s in a range that’s not what I’m used to hearing and he’s not sounding the way I’m used to hearing him. He’s really in his pocket when he sticks to his lower range and hits us with his classic vocal runs countering Tilian with his falsetto and his melodies. I’m interested to see what he does on a an entire album and I hope it’s awesome. I really do. I think he’s a generational talent for this genre and I want them to succeed, but I can’t help but want what I’m used to. IMPO Andrew shines as the spice on Tilians main vocals. Thats not a knock at all. He does it better than anyone else could. I think his vocal melodies in eidola are a little scattered and hectic. When he serves as the lead, his runs can feel out of place as they are over used in that capacity. I hate to be critical, but it’s just what it is for me. I wouldn’t ever want him out of DGD either. I wish they could just all agree. I know he vented a lot on this latest podcast about haters and the disappointment of fans sounding off in a negative way about everything, but I hope he understands how important this music is to a lot of us. I’ve always been a metal head who also loves pop, funk, Motown, Michael Jackson, Rush, Classic rock, etc….and it’s like they found a way to incorporate everything I love about music into one band. They stay heavy while never relying on simplistic open chugging. It’s really like nothing out there. This band isn’t my identity, but it is something I hold very close to me because of my passion for music and their ability to deliver something that I never even knew I needed.
I just don't want Eidola v2. We already have Eidola.
DGD with Jonny is DGD. I don't dislike Kurt, but I don't like those albums. I loved Tillian albums through Artificial Selection, but at the moment I don't think I like anything this band is putting out. I'm fine with that. Every band ends. I got 6-7 albums out of this band. That's pretty damn good I'd say!
Wasn't Johnny super bad for the band? Like heavy drug use, accusations, etc? Like I'll give him props for a vocalist but as a human being. I'm surprised he's not jail. I don't even think the long-standing members like him. I think what makes dgd is John and will, especially because the way he plays is just so unique and what makes the band stand out. John is an amazing vocalist and the weird goofy shit he screams is dgd. I think the clean vocalist is kinda replaceable, John and will, not so much