Dali - 'Vol.1' EP Review

Tracklist:

1. Borrowed Time

2. You're Not The One

3. Close

4. Wasteland

It's 2020. An odd year given the global pandemic going on around us. Cast your mind back to when we could still go outside and you'll surely remember a society where the external image seemed to rule supreme. When someone's lunch on social media could be enjoyed by millions. Which made listening to Dali such a tonic. It was so refreshing to discover a band and a voice which focussed on the world inside us, the world of genuine thoughts and feelings, instead of image.

Sonically, this is an EP of two halves. The head-bobbing juggernaut of an opener 'Borrowed Time' which leads into the excellent 'You're Not The One', with it's stop-start verse groove and driving chorus, suggest this should be straight up Hard Rock from here on in. Deftly however, the band changes pace for 'Close' and the anthemic 'Wasteland', which is almost dripping in longing. With their Rock bravado giving way to a softer, at times tender feeling, it is almost as though the band has begun to trust and open up to the listener.

The more you listen though, the more you realise the band has been lyrically open and honest from the start - we just weren't listening. And despite being emotional at times, the lyrics deftly avoid the trap of becoming heartache songs, retaining an all important feeling of hope.

Sadly, the EP ends just as it feels the band are hitting their stride. It would be interesting to see which direction they take, and how they develop their sound on a longer release.

This is a band to watch out for!

Standout Track: Wasteland