Afterburner
| Dance Gavin Dance
Afterburner
Afterburner is the ninth full-length studio album by American rock band Dance Gavin Dance. Released on April 24, 2020, through Rise Records, the album serves as a follow-up the group's eighth studio album, Artificial Selection (2018). Prior to the album's release, the band released the non-album singles "Head Hunter" and "Blood Wolf" in March and October 2019, respectively. Recording sessions for the album took place over a five-month period between June and November 2019 with producer Kris Crummett at Interlace Audio in Portland, Oregon, while the vocals were recorded with producer Drew Fulk in Los Angeles, California. The album is considered a musical progression for the band, showcasing experimentation with funk, Latin, rap, and metalcore accompanied with their habitual post-hardcore and experimental rock style. -Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Sputnik Music
With a ninth full length under their belt, it’s clear that Dance Gavin Dance show no signs of stopping as they continue to delve deeper into their well established sound, bringing forth a diverse array of beautiful, serene groove and abrasive, fierce progression in Afterburner.
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Kill Your Stereo
‘Afterburner’ is the essential Dance Gavin Dance experience. It is simultaneously the most Dance Gavin Dance record that you could expect these days, whilst containing plenty of fresh ideas and different genre influences that tastefully boost their progressive post-hardcore sound with funk, rap, Latin, and pop vibes.
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Cryptic Rock
Unrestrained, without boundaries, and inspired to pursue a sound that is wholly their own, Dance Gavin Dance proves time and time again that their confidence as a band is merely a reflection of their brilliant competency.
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New Transcendence
While it might not have the replay value or nostalgic appeal some of their previous records have, Afterburner sees Dance Gavin Dance working cohesively—a creative unit with all cylinders firing—and creating a strong, solid—albeit safe—contribution to their airtight discography.
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Bring the Noise UK
Afterburner ends up suffering from some less than memorable songs, which hinder this otherwise great, and quite experimental, ninth Dance Gavin Dance record.
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Hysteria Magazine
Bouncing effortlessly through metal, punk, rock, and groove-thirsty hip-wiggling pop like they own the joint, Dance Gavin Dance are an acquired taste that it’s pretty easy to acquire with a little time.
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The Needle Drop
DGD is up to their old tricks on Afterburner.
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Distorted Sound Magazine
A great follow up from their 2018 Artificial Selection and overall an exciting prospect at what the future might hold for the band.
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Wall of Sound
What makes a good album? A good album catches your attention and keeps it. A good album has little surprises for you in its melody, a guitar riff and lyrics. A good album is easy to listen to. But what makes a great album? You should ask Dance Gavin Dance.
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Varsity Music Magazine
Afterburner is an addition to their discography that pushes the boundaries of what it means to be Dance Gavin Dance. It is more experimental than I expected, but I wouldn't miss it for anything.
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The Girls at the Rock Show
Afterburner is a pleasant breath of fresh air and will definitely help carry us through what is shaping up to be the weirdest summer ever.
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Punktastic
‘Afterburner’ is no exception to this, thrusting thirteen tracks of solid gold straight down your ears – a prize that your brain will be more than happy to cash.
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Altpress
From the onset of Dance Gavin Dance’s latest record, Afterburner, it’s clear they are still an evolving band.
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University Press
“Afterburner” is my favorite album of 2020 despite the recent events dealing with COVID-19 and some of the songs remind me of simpler times.
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Scene Daddy
The record finally arrives at its conclusion, and the only thing I recommend is pushing play again, because this is the best record of Dance Gavin Dance’s career.
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Glasse Factory
It is interesting that Dance Gavin Dance concludes their album with their most experimental track to date, leaving its listeners with a bittersweet feeling, as the last songs in albums in the past have also done. Though very different from their typical music, “Into the Sunset” pairs old sounds with new without losing sight of who they are as a band, which all in all shows of their artistic talent and craftsmanship.
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Rock N Load
As always the album is a cacophony of beautifully balanced melodic beauties and gnarly riffle and angst-laden vocals intertwined with the soft intimate and delicate moments that only DGD can do so well.
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New Noise
Afterburner ultimately does what the band does best and creates a pleasant listening experience.
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Metro Weekly
If this all sounds chaotic, that’s because it absolutely is, but it all comes together shockingly well in the highly addictive Afterburner, the band’s most unique record yet.
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Tristan Zelden
Afterburner has its problems, even with some strong songs have hiccups. The guitar work impresses early on but soon melds together, same with the vocal performances. Lyrically well written with some instrumental and vocal high points to make up for the lows.
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The Soundboard
Afterburner is little more than a chore to get through and one that can’t in good faith warrant repeat listens. Saying that, when album number ten comes along and it’s effectively the same thing once again, even that’s too close to a ‘repeat listen’ than is suitably wanted.
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Dead Press
As the group’s ninth record draws to a close, the firm post-hardcore roots of Dance Gavin Dance seem to have all but left them in favour for an altogether new sound.
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Sleeping Village
If you don’t like Dance Gavin Dance, this album won’t win you over, but if you already love them like me you’ll find this album is another fantastic addition to their discography.
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Call The One
Dance Gavin Dance have masterfully created a beautiful album, using elements that other bands would simply stare at in bewilderment. They are truly unique, and ‘Afterburner’ proves that.
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Resurget Magazine
The album is a dynamic range for the band, providing a blend that is both parts melodic and contentious.
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Medium
If the missteps had been a bit less frequent and not as stark, this would have been a really good album. It’s hard for an album as experimental as Afterburner to be mediocre, but here we are.
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Discovered Magazine
It’s 2020, yet Dance Gavin Dance have been able to release something with the capacity to become a timeless classic.
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Haulix Daily
Afterburner, like any release in the group’s catalog, is a series of experiments to understand what limits, if any, exist in music. That exploration alone is worthy of acclaim, but the fact that the band’s songs are easily accessible to most fans of rock music is something else altogether.
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