Album review: Ducking Punches – Alamort

Gone are the acoustic tendencies, the grounding that started off with Dan Allen’s softly strummed storytelling and developed into a larger band sound.

On this, record number four, the group have gone heavy. Post-punk pushes through the sound, and those accented hardcore bands of the early-to-mid noughties rear their heads.

It’s not all nostalgia and toe-curling cringe though before you get worried. These guys have thought about this and put some decent music on record to help Allen’s personal lyric writing soar.

The percussion throughout Distant Shadows really propels it along, the almost vulnerable vocals of Allen suiting the sounds they fly alongside. It’s a quick-flowing guitar track and should prove a live favourite for the band.

There is more of a ramped up stadium sound aimed for on Witches Of Valais and on this occasion - pun fully intended – they do land their punches. The musical interludes help the song gel nicely and the big-energy outro is worth waiting for.

There is the Whales In Cubicles-esque Sobriety, too. This is a deeply personal track about Allen’s struggles with addiction and when you know the subject matter it makes it an extra-personal vision into his soul. This is mostly apparent with the screeched ending.

There is a lot of fun to be had too. Face The Faxe is upbeat and jolly when next to the previous track. It shows more than one string to the song-writing bow. While we have the sinister and serious, the more nonchalant can also be thrown down, especially the rip-roaring guitar solo two thirds through.

Also deserving of mention is the sweetly sadistic The Club With No Name. It oozes anger in its easily annoyed versus – well worth catching.

There is more to this than just your standard mainstream post-punk hardcore assault as has graced our radio waves for the best part of 20 years.

If they continue with this louder sound Ducking Punches may be coming out swinging into the big time fairly soon.

Rating: 7/10

As part of the new album tour, Ducking Punches will play Stourbridge’s The River Rooms on April 18.