It’s easy to love an album or two from a band, but bands with a lengthy career tend to have member shifts, changes in sound, and some albums that will certainly be more prolific than others. It’s compelling to see how one album stacks up to the others, and how a band is received as a whole as opposed to their most recent work. As such, I look to dissect some bands based on their entire discography, starting with Dance Gavin Dance.

DGD got their start in 2005, with their first release being Whatever I Say is Royal Ocean. This is the band’s most polarizing work, with some diehard fans defending it tooth and nail. However, it’s my least favorite offering from Dance Gavin Dance. The recording is inferior to the rest of the catalog, and the compositions as a whole aren’t very cohesive. The vocals aren’t refined and Will Swan’s guitar riffs aren’t as memorable. Nevertheless, the band got the attention of Rise Records, and signed/re-released the EP in 2006 before gearing up for their debut album.

Downtown Battle Mountain is where Dance Gavin Dance put the pieces of the puzzle together to make a mark. This 2007 album saw improvements to the mixing/mastering from Kris Crummett, and singles like “And I Told Them I Invented Times New Roman” and “Lemon Meringue Tie” still get requested for the band’s shows 13 years later. Masterful artwork from Mattias Adolfsson brought the album title to life, and the band saw growth after DBM.

With Jonny Craig out of the band, fresh find Kurt Travis took his place for the band’s sophomore LP, Dance Gavin Dance. Released in 2008, Dance Gavin Dance capitalized on their rise with a real scorcher. Nabbing 3 guest vocalists, including Chino Moreno of Deftones, unclean vocalist Jonathan Mess truly went off in this effort. Striking instrumentals in tracks like “Uneasy Hearts Weigh the Most” and “Me and Zoloft Get Along Just Fine” are etched in the annals of post-hardcore playlists everywhere.

After Mess left the band for vocal surgery, Swan hopped onto unclean vocals for 2009’s Happiness. This is where the divides in DGD’s fanbase start to form, as this record features the funky side of the band who were experimenting left and right. Personally, it’s in my top 3 for Dance Gavin Dance, with every song front to back being noteworthy. While Swan’s uncleans were rough, they got the job done while Mess was away.

Downtown Battle Mountain II saw the return of Craig and Mess to expand upon the band’s original release. Building off the funk of Happiness, Craig added a touch of soul with his divine, refined vocals. Mess’ surgery was a rousing success, as he sounded more clear and powerful. This is the band firing on all cylinders, especially drummer Matthew Mingus. Exuding as much talent as they did, 2011 was a great year for Dance Gavin Dance, as DBMII broke into the top 100 on Billboard.

After more issues with Craig the band almost split up, that is, until they recruited Tilian Pearson, formerly of Tides of Man. All of the lineup shifts over DGD’s early years were a subject of ire, but the band sought to form a concrete roster with Tilian. This culminated in 2013’s Acceptance Speech. The final mix of this album is notoriously rough, enough for it to get re-mixed in 2019. Tilian himself has expressed in an interview that he had not truly integrated with the band this early on, but I still find it to be an enjoying listen with strong songs like “Strawberry Swisher, Pt. 3” and “Death of the Robot with Human Hair.”

With Instant Gratification, this is the first time the band’s core lineup stayed the same for two consecutive releases. Tilian really started to mesh with the band here, as “We Own the Night” kicked the album off in style. Plenty of deep cuts like “Awkward” and “Legend” are just as playable as the record’s singles. Dance Gavin Dance was really starting to get big in 2015, showing that after 10 turbulent years, there was still plenty left in the tank.

Mothership is regarded by a good portion of the fanbase as the band’s magnum opus and I tend to agree. After three albums with the same lineup, this was their peak on the Billboard at spot number 13, which is very impressive for the niche genre of post-hardcore. With not a moment of filler, Mothership deserves to be lauded as not only the band’s best album, but one of the best the genre has to offer. This is thanks to DGD intricacies like fantastic guitar dualities, compelling lyrics, and choruses that will not escape your brain.

2018’s Artificial Selection kept up the frenetic pace of the Tilian era, with several bangers like “Care” and “Midnight Crusade” earning millions of plays in no time. This is the first album since 2009 to feature guest vocalists as well, including Travis hopping on “Shelf Life.” “Evaporate” celebrates the legacy of the band with an outro that sent goosebumps down countless fans’ spines with a summation of previous songs being sung.

Then we come to Dance Gavin Dance’s most recent album, Afterburner. Now at five albums with a consistent lineup, one might think there’s a bit of drag or maybe some slump at this point. However, that isn’t the case. Collaborating with more musicians than ever, Afterburner has oddballs like the Spanish-sung “Calentamiento Global,” and the ethereal “Into the Sunset” featuring Bilmuri. While my favorite songs from the band, “Lyrics Lie” and “Nothing Shameful” are here, there are some skippable tracks in the middle. This is mostly because it’s evident that effort was at the epicenter of the singles. Regardless, it’s still a strong effort 15 years into DGD’s career.

So, as a whole, how enjoyable is Dance Gavin Dance? The answer is immensely enjoyable. There’s a fairly consistent instrumental sound across every album, but the variation in vocalists makes for a unique experience between records. DGD also has staples across their discography: gorgeous Mattias Adolfsson album art, a Jon Howe-animated music video, a Strawberry/Robot song, etc. The band’s live albums tend to be inferior to the album versions, but that’s understandable. The B-sides, on the other hand, are stellar; “Summertime Gladness” and “Perfect” are some of Dance Gavin Dance’s best work. On top of it all, each album is available instrumentally as of 2019 if screaming isn’t your thing. From the start to the present, Dance Gavin Dance is a pleasure to listen to.

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Dance Gavin Dance

9

Score

9.0/10

Pros

• Profound Consistency
• Barely Any Filler Tracks
• Variety In Vocalists

Cons

• WISIRO Is Passable
• Rough Live Albums