The name almost gives you a misconception about the band. When you think of Daylight For Deadeyes you probably think of a Hardcore Metal band, but you will be pleasantly surprised by the great all round sound of Daylight For Deadeyes.

Daylight For Deadeyes consists of three members Chris Gormley on Drums and Lead Vocals, Matt Gormley on Guitar and Vocals and Andrew Neill on Bass Guitar and Vocals. The band is formed out of the GTA, for people who don’t know it is the Greater Toronto Area

I am always amazed to see and hear a band where the drummer is also the lead singer. I still can’t get over how these musicians are able to do it. I have also yet to hear the vocals sound bad when the drummer is the lead singer. Daylight for Deadeyes vocals are also a very high selling point for me when I listen to their music. Especially the fourth song “Leave”.

The Self - Titled Daylight For Deadeyes album is their debut album which has sold over 1500 albums at their live shows. The album consists of six tracks, Breakin’ My Back, This Night, Felling Low, Leave, Let You Go, Fill You Up.

As you first approach the album, and as you listen to the first song “Breakin’ My Back” you immediately get hooked into the song if not the album as the opening riff takes and makes you give the song your full attention. The sound of the riff immediately makes me think of The Rolling Stones and just a classic 70’s style rock riff. The vocals however are a lot softer and clearer than what you would hear from The Stones or a 70’s song. This song really hits home with me because working in Construction Field I’m pretty much “Breakin’ My Back Everyday” as the lyrics in the song go. This song I probably wouldn’t be far off by saying that when this song was being written, the song was a song that was going to be played at every concert and was a song that was going to grab everybody’s attention. The reason behind my thinking is at around 1:45 and for thirty or so seconds there is a nice instrumental break which then leads into the drums that have a possible audience hand clap situation.

“This Night” picks up where “Breakin’ My Back” leaves off. Just as the first song “This Night” is made for a live performance probably in around the middle of their set because of the band keeps repeating the line “Let’s make this night go on and on” throughout the song. The drums in “This Night” somewhat gives you the feeling or sense that the track may fit well as a acoustic track. The feeling that you get when you listen to the track pretty much will make you feel in a good mood. Where some songs are a “Joe Downer” type of song, “This Night” shouldn’t have a problem putting you in a good mood, a “Up and Go” kind of song. The vocals in the track follow the tempo of the song and also blends in very nicely to me with the pitch of the guitars and cymbals from the drums.

“Let You Go” follows the exact attributes that Daylight For Deadeyes has set out for themselves. As I listen to this song for some reason I cannot seem to shake the impression of the band The Proclaimers in this song. Even though I am probably the only one to think of this I just thought that I would put it out there to see if anyone else hears the band also. If I had to pick a single from the album this would be the song that would win. It is a hard choice but I believe this is the strongest song on the album. This is probably one of the few songs where I would say that the Bass Guitar has a big part in a song but in this song it does, I believe it is the main bass line and wow it is a real catchy one. The only other band that I can think of where the Bass becomes a major factor in their songs would be Led Zeppelin. The Electric Guitar in the song really brings out a New Country feeling and sound, especially when the song hit’s the three minute mark. If the same riff was played at the start of a song I am pretty sure you would be hooked into the song.

www.daylightfordeadeyes.com

Matt Hartwick
m.hartwick@partyinkingston.com