Double Dagger, More

Want some punk for the masses? Blasphemy! Go buy some Green Day if your stomach can’t handle real punk. If you get tired of all the hate and madness, however, Double Dagger’s More is much easily digestible. What you get, instead of the routine “I hate George Bush,” “government oppression,” is a rather comical commentary on the typical schlub, and the American experience. Then again, at times I don’t know what the hell they’re singing about (and I bet they hate George Bush).

More is Double Dagger’s third full-length album, and while decidedly post-punk, it’s also a definite departure from the genre. The band operates without a guitarist, which is a departure in itself. There are plenty of groups that lack a bass, but hell, even Les Claypool keeps a guitarist within reach. Despite being a guitarist myself, I can’t say I miss it. Bassist Bruce Willen has crafted some really cool licks and plays his bass quite like a guitar, where it could be easily mistaken as one at times. As you would expect, those who like bass-heavy tracks will dig this and should sample “Camouflage.” Vocalist Nolen Strals and drummer Denny Bowen round out the trio and manage to stay just as loud and impressive as Willen.

No punk album is complete without some spoken word, and “The lie/The truth” delivers its point with a little bit of that comedic flair I was mentioning: “Your living in the middle of nowhere / in a town called exactly right / It’s got a population of you / and everyone sleeps well at night.” These serious-yet-fun lyrics continue through much of the album, and it’s nice to see a loud group not take itself too seriously.

I was also impressed with the soft beginnings of some of the tracks. Upon first sound, it’s not something you’d expect to hear, and even though you know some heavy sound is coming, it somehow builds anticipation. If you’re in a hole of confusion, then let me try to create some imagery: Explosions in the Sky drinking Mezcal from the bottle, smoking unfiltered Camels, and doing hammer curls — they’d craft similar intros. I might possibly have dug that hole deeper with that, but hell, if you like punk and like to have fun, then just go see ’em! They’ll be in Houston June 23rd. I’d bring a mouthpiece if you plan to get close. Bring some extra cash, too, because I bet you’ll want to take a disc home with you.