[8/10]
Emo two-piece Dads dish up more heart-wrenching lyrics and twinkly guitars on their recently released third album: I’ll Be The Tornado. Following up a wildly acclaimed album is never an easy task, so when Dads set out to write the follow up to American Radass (This is Important), they had their hands full. But, luckily for Dads (and us), they seemed to have nailed it.
The first track of the album, ‘Grand Edge, MI,’ starts off with plaintive guitars and more polished sounding vocals, but builds into something noisy and fantastic. The next track, ‘Chewing Ghosts,’ manages to combine dancey music with bitter lyrics such as “Your mother was right / You are the bastard type / And I won’t fuel the fire that keeps you warm.” One of the highlights of the album is ‘Hold You Back,’ which sounds like it could’ve been written by Dinosaur Jr. in the best possible way with its sludgy guitars and almost shouted vocals. ‘Take Back Today’ is an upbeat romantic number with the lyrics “I want to forever follow / Tell me where does your shadow go?” The album takes a turn again for the slow and sad with the final track, ‘Only You.’
The album as a whole feels more polished than Dads’ earlier releases. The track list, which has a good variety of tempo and subject matter, seems more purposeful. Additionally, the production sounds neater. But, thankfully, the polishing does not detract from the heartfelt nature of the music. The stylistic dualities that first helped Dads to stand out remain present on I’ll Be The Tornado. Their music is still simple on the surface, but filled with clever guitar licks. Similarly, Dads have not lost their ability to write lyrics that manage to say such poignant things in such funny ways. The combined effect creates an album proving that Dads have matured as a band over time. I’ll Be The Tornado might just be Dads’ best release yet.
