Coda break through
The Dust Coda Loco Paradise
Their last album went Top Ten and they recently opened for Guns N Roses at Hyde Park. Could The Dust Coda be British hard rock’s next big thing?
They deserve to be. Their third album erupts like thunder with the riff of Road To Hell punching away like Mike Tyson.
This exhilarating opener showcases all the London quartet’s strengths – Aussieborn singer John Drake’s huge vocals, Adam Mackie’s whipsmart guitar and the robust rhythm section of drummer Scott Miller and bassist Tony Ho.
They take their foot off the pedal for the bewitching Fairweather Love, which has the nuance of Soundgarden as it builds from the verse’s fingerpicked acoustic guitar to a massive festival-friendly chorus. The Dust Coda aren’t a rock-by numbers combo.
Mojo Skyline in 2021 tipped its hat to bands like Humble Pie and Bad Company, showing their ability to infuse their songs with emotional alchemy.
They have the subtlety of Led Zeppelin at their most tender and occasionally echo them on seductive numbers like The Streets and It Won’t Be Long.
Summery ballad Love Sick, about a toxic relationship, starts gently with a touch of falsetto on the verse then sucks you in like quicksand. Produced by Charlie Russell (Kasabian, Jamiroquai), these 11 tracks naturally include tough hard-rocking anthems like Rock N Roll Paradise and Free All The Dancers, powered by a driving, aggressive riff.
Since You’ve Been Gone – not a Rainbow cover – is a bluesy ballad that grows into a mighty anthem.
Call Out The Dogs is arguably the most immediate rocker with its earworm chorus and an extended passage destined for festival crowd singalongs.
Beauty and carnage, passion and power… This band has it all.
The road to hell may open wide, as Drake suggests, but odds-on their road to the top is opening faster.