Dashboard Confessional

Dusk and Summer
Vagrant Records/Universal

There’s a secret that we keep
I won’t sleep if you won’t sleep
Because tonight might be the last chance we’ll be given
We are compelled to do what we must do
We are compelled to do what we have been forbidden
- ‘The Secret’s in the Telling’

The elements that draw listeners to Dashboard Confessional’s albums are firmly in place on their latest release, Dusk and Summer. The unmistakeable, heart wrenching, compelling lyrics, are still as emotional as they were when they first began making music in 2000.

This EP, however, has a more mellowed-out sound, with elements of aggressive and foreboding tones on only a number of tracks.

Chris Carrabba, the creative force behind the band, said this album is all about “stripping down” and letting his voice carry the music, which was achieved successfully via hits like ‘Don’t Wait’ and ‘The Secret’s in the Telling’.

Other notable songs include the disc’s hit title track and the piano-led, “So Long, So Long”, with Counting Crows’ front man Adam Duritz on background vocals.

Although no summer anthem has come out of Dusk and Summer like the 2004 Spiderman contribution ‘Vindicated’, it’ll be easy for fans to throw the disc on for some good emotional lovin’.

Source: SceneandHeard.ca, Volume 6 Issue 4