Band:	Dance Gavin Dance
Album:	Happiness

So this is what ‘happiness’ sounds like? I’ve never associated happiness with post-hardcore music, but then again neither do Dance Gavin Dance. Despite your first impression of the title, the band tends to stick to the typical subject matter of similar scene bands. Take this lyric from the song “Carl Barker” (There’s no sense in me saying that life doesn’t matter/It doesn’t matter, it never mattered) or this one from “Tree Village” (I didn’t catch a break/Maybe I am dying inside?/February, been so lonely/ It’s been so long since I felt your touch/ I could care less if I deserve this) for example.

Happiness is still the focus of the album, but instead of having happiness, the subject matter tends to focuses on losing or never finding it at all. “Happiness”, the title track, is possibly the most ironic title in recent memory as the song describes what seems like a girlfriend drowning in a lake, with a boyfriend who blames himself for the accident.

I find myself wrapped up in the stories and lyrics on this album. This doesn’t happen often, especially with post-hardcore music. Often the lyrics are so unintelligible through the screams, or the music is so aggressive and distorted that the vocals get lost in the mix. It is Dance Gavin Dance’s unique style of mostly clean guitars and mostly clean vocals that put the lyrics so far up front. This is great when you have a strong song that contains great lyrics and poetry.  But when the lyrics are weak…

But first the strengths. Dance Gavin Dance can take the appealing nature of  pop music and apply it to the best parts of post-hardcore. Take a good melody, some decent lyrics and a strong singer, put him upfront in the mix and you have yourself a hit song. But add complex song arrangements, filled with layers of driving aggressive drums, staccato, almost math influenced guitars, a bass line that holds up more than its own weight, and a tonne of surprises and you have yourself a hit song that you won’t feel dirty listening to.

Jason Ellis (no longer in the band) takes the often underutilized bass and puts other players to shame. “NASA” is a clinic on playing bass in a post-hardcore band. “Tree Village” and “I’m Down with Brown Town” are math-core done right. The group can flip the tempo and add some complex guitar, drum, and bass fills without loosing the melody or the listener. But the band also shows they can write a strong song without all the musical gymnastics. “Happiness” and “Self-Trepanation” are just strong songs and are better without the flash found on the first several tracks of the album.

The album delves into its weaknesses at “Strawberry Swisher Pt. 1″. It sounds like Fall of Troy re-imaging John Mayer’s “Your Body Is a Wonderland”. Despite the song taking a dive into the deep end of pop inspiration, it is not without its charm. Lyrics like (We can have some coffee/You can do my laundry/Please, girl, stay). Unfortunately that is the only bit of lyrical originality. “Don’t Tell Dave” is another low point. This funk-dance-pop song about having “a real good time” sticks out like a sore thumb. It is this type of frat-boy songwriting that turns me away from rap and rock music. After listening to the rest of the album, “Don’t Tell Dave” seems beneath them.

This type of polarization can happen when you walk a thin line between different genres. If you fall too far to one side of the line you can cause purists to take offense. It is the pop sensibilities that add fresh air to their complex arrangements and song-writing. Post-hardcore had seemingly fallen flat, and it needed a band like Dance Gavin Dance to come along and breathe some fresh-air into the genre.  But when you remove what I consider the intelligence of the songs, and replace it with cliches or tired party themes the songs miss the mark.

Whether all of the songs worked or not, “Happiness” is a refreshing album to listen to. “Happiness” is eclectic and interesting, mixing bits of funk, dance and pop, with hardcore, math, and rock. Think Fall of Troy meets Armor for Sleep meets Saosin meets The Used meets Damiera.  It is a lot to take in a first, but purists shouldn’t be scared off by the comparisons.  Those that give it a chance will be pleased with the result.

Dance Gavin Dance on MySpace
Dance Gavin Dance - “Happiness” on Amazon

Release Date: June 9th, 2009

“Happiness” - Tracklist
(* recommended tracks)

1. Tree Village*
2. I’m Down with Brown Town*
3. NASA*
4. Carl Barker
5. Happiness*
6. Self-Trepanation*
7. Strawberry Swisher Pt. 1
8. Don’t Tell Dave
9. Strawberry Swisher Pt. 2
10. Powder to the People

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