Music
Press
‘Black Daniel make the sort of bombastic sludge rock which is never not fun, and what is more ‘Look Away Sancho’ - in all its shouty, singalonga brilliance, is free. Thing is, it’s hard to pull this sort of thing off – because these dark Daniels really do sound like the sort of dirty-haired naughties who’d squawk ‘Daaaaaang, girl!’ at you, should you take their fancy. To listen to it is to have some Wild Turkey slopped in your face by someone who wants to wind you up precisely so that they might catch you off guard; whereupon they would lick it off your face while smirking to themselves. Basically it is top, top, top larks - as, incidentally, is anysong that features the Stoogian concept of a girl so dastardly, she 'wants you to beg'
Drowned In Sound
- Drowned in Sound
"They've got a knack for big ominous electro and a double A-side single out soon that we would heartily recommend"
- NME
“A innovative transatlantic fused concoction of the blues, swaggering, street-life soul and a general rock and roll nonchalance coupled to deep electro tinges, in their relatively short time together Black Daniel are already flirting with fame and mainstream acclaim” - Clash
"The kind of thing sub-woofers were built for[…]this should be the beginning of something beautiful for the three to five assorted folks that are Black Daniel" - Noize Makes Enemies
"A gloriously surreal portion of deadpan pop" - The Fly
Discography
"Say Hello"
Record Of The Week (Colin Murry Radio 1 & Lauren Laverne on 6Radio)
"Hard Times on the Way" - Dustbowl Recordings
2008
"Here Comes Caesar/I Love You But Don't Touch Me Cos You're Sick" - Dustbowl Recordings - digital bundle
"Look Away Sancho" - free digital release - November 23rd Drowned in Sounds best singles of 2009 & Gill Mills NME Radio best of 2009
"Let's Get Sued" - Dustbowl Recordings - March 2010
Listen/watch on:
www.myspace/blackdanielspace
www.youtube/blackdanielTV
Photos
Bio
Black Daniel haven't got off to the most conventional of starts in their short, but eventful career. The trio (brothers Luke and Lamik2000 from London, Craig Louis Higgins Jnr. from NYC) met on a dancefloor of a lower east side disco 2 years ago, where they discovered a host of common interests, namely party drugs and long walks in the rain.
Craig ended up tour managing Luke and Lamik, who were at that time masquerading as DJs, and a bizarre and wonderful relationship blossomed. With the tour over, the three now friends decided to form a band, and within a year they'd released their first album.
So far, so good, right? Right. Well, sort of. The first two singles 'Chelsea Teardrops' and 'Say Hello' had alternative radio all over them (Lauren Laverne sessions, Colin Murray's Record of the Week, XFM plays etc), the likes of NME and Time Out were bigging them up at press, and the band's relentless gigging earned them the status of one of London's most exciting party bands, owing to their unpredictable, raucous shows. And then, what should be the pinnacle of any young band's career - they released their debut album... ' Hard Times On the Way' came out in November '08, and ONE WEEK later distributor Pinnacle went bust and the album disappeared into a black, contracts, paperwork-shaped hole for nearly a whole year. Finally, with the help of a company called Icebreaker, the band have their record back, which remains the same, apart from some shiny new artwork and some remixing/remastering tweaks.
In the year that the band kissed goodbye to their first LP - undeterred - Black Daniel decided to get DIY about things and set up their own label - Dustbowl Recordings - and to make another album. Et voila - Black Daniel would like to present 'Let's Get Sued', their glorious second record, which they're delighted to announce will be released (longterm!) on March 22nd 2010!
'Let's Get Sued' is drenched in the musical traits that got Black Daniel noticed in the first place. Scuzzy, distorted, garage sounds, the shared vocal duties and interplay between Lamik and Craig (Lamik's English drawl, Craig's unter NY intonations), and the brazen, stomping songwriting, make this a band with one of the most identifiable sounds around.
The album features the acclaimed singles ‘I Love You But Don’t Touch Me But Your Sick’ and ‘Here Comes Caesar’. ‘Look Away Sancho’ and ‘Move Like Royalty’ play on those Velvet Underground comparisons perfectly, infusing a stomping glam rhythm onto Black Daniel’s quintessential garage swagger. And with tracks like ‘Money’ and ‘Lonely Screen Boy’, the guys (somewhat) slow things down to a dirty choral psychedelia akin to the likes of Nick Cave and The Doors, proving they ain’t no one trick pony. By the time ‘Lonely Dream Boy’ closes proceedings, that wash of adrenaline will seem so powerful, you’ll struggle not to hit the play button again.
Black Daniel's DIY work ethic also extends to how they promote their releases. Earlier this summer, they released double A-side 'Here Comes Caeser/I Love You..', which they marked with a week of last minute, impromptu gigs in Soho including a 5 night residency in a strip joint, guerilla street gigs and a Black Daniel soundsystem (OK, them walking around with a boombox, terrorising Soho). The lead up to the release of 'Let's Get Sued' will be filled with similarly unique ways of spreading the Black Daniel love.
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