Day OneLess Than PerfectReview

New Zealand has always come up with some of the most diverse, exciting and state-of-the-art music. Its indie scene is legendary and its house, drum&bass and pop scenes go from strength to strength.
So, it's somewhat surprising that one of the key acts we've heard recently from that blessed country happens to be a death metal band: Day One.

Not to be confused with the Bristol based hip-hop band of the same name, Day One hail from Auckland and have been rocking since 1998. With a recent line-up change and highly praised performance at 2001's Big Out Festival, Day One look to take the antipodean scene by storm and if this release is anything to go by, the rest of the world will catch on soon.

A technically impressive and furious mix of death metal, hardcore and nu-metal sounds, Less Than Perfect is wrapped in fantastic chord progressions and multiple time signatures.

From the powerful blast of the opening track "Contempt" to the crushing riffage of "All Seeing Eye", the band rock with the intensity of Slayer and the complexity of Mínus. Tracks like "MSA" and "Root Of All Evil" change technique often, throwing a whole slew of different flavours into the mix with originality and precision.

Rather than relying on production, Day One incorporate industrial noise, samples and filters into the song writing process itself, often shifting gears but never losing focus or edge, even in the more melodic moments. With compositions as powerful as this, one can only imagine how amazing this band must sound live.

Less Than Perfect is an absolute must for any fan of heavy music and with any luck, we'll be seeing a lot more them in the Northern hemisphere by the time summer rolls around. It's fast, it's original and it absolutely rocks.
New Zealand has always come up with some of the most diverse, exciting and state-of-the-art music. Its indie scene is legendary and its house, drum&bass and pop scenes go from strength to strength.
So, it's somewhat surprising that one of the key acts we've heard recently from that blessed country happens to be a death metal band: Day One.

Not to be confused with the Bristol based hip-hop band of the same name, Day One hail from Auckland and have been rocking since 1998. With a recent line-up change and highly praised performance at 2001's Big Out Festival, Day One look to take the antipodean scene by storm and if this release is anything to go by, the rest of the world will catch on soon.

A technically impressive and furious mix of death metal, hardcore and nu-metal sounds, Less Than Perfect is wrapped in fantastic chord progressions and multiple time signatures.

From the powerful blast of the opening track "Contempt" to the crushing riffage of "All Seeing Eye", the band rock with the intensity of Slayer and the complexity of Mínus. Tracks like "MSA" and "Root Of All Evil" change technique often, throwing a whole slew of different flavours into the mix with originality and precision.

Rather than relying on production, Day One incorporate industrial noise, samples and filters into the song writing process itself, often shifting gears but never losing focus or edge, even in the more melodic moments. With compositions as powerful as this, one can only imagine how amazing this band must sound live.

Less Than Perfect is an absolute must for any fan of heavy music and with any luck, we'll be seeing a lot more them in the Northern hemisphere by the time summer rolls around. It's fast, it's original and it absolutely rocks.