Review Summary: British Rock Is Unforgiving.
In the state of modern British rock, there are two categories where up and coming bands fall into. They bring out a decent debut that's met with acclaim, then fall to the wayside under negative scrutinization with the follow up (Zico chain I’m looking at you). On the other hand they could live and die a local band, never able to grasp any further attention outside their postcode. Then we have Blackpool's Darlia.
Taking notes from the 90's US grunge scene, Nathan Day's vocals are reminiscent of Kurt Cobain in the quiet/loud dynamics that frequent tracks such as Stars Are Aligned or I've Never been To Ohio. Burrowing the snarky drawl and penchant for riffs of early Kasabian, the songwriting found within Petals is remarkably strong. An intention to get you moving to the hyper active sing-along, plain to see in the bands remastered version of Queen of Hearts which benefits from sleeker production.
The latter part of the record where the band shows a softer side is where quality begins to dip. Say your prayers suffers from bland lyrics and timid instrumentation. Although its the two acoustic tracks that are the real shame. Pandemonium offers good rhythm but ultimately becomes forgettable and acoustic cover of Candyman has no depth to make it stand out against the electric version. The problem is that this side to the band hasn't fully matured yet, so the music takes a hit. Darlia aren't ready to bear their soul, they just want to bash your head against the wall.
Whilst Petals doesn't break any new ground it establishes the band as a worthy addition to the current music scene. They have the big choruses and youthful vitriol to make tracks like heavily repetitive Dear Diary engaging. Maturity comes with experience which will either be a blessing or curse towards future efforts. I've never been to Ohio but I've been Blackpool. I'd rather go Ohio. I think Darlia would agree.
