Daydream Vacation: Dare Seize the Fire

Dare Seize the Fire is a difficult record to truly make sense of. There’s the pop aesthetic of Matt & Kim but the bombast and energy of Andrew W.K. There are so many things happening at any given moment that, on the first listen, anyone could miss them. That they all combine so coherently and so cohesively points to Daydream Vacation being a more talented songwriting ensemble than the songs let on. Everything on Dare Seize the Fire would be radio-friendly if the band weren’t intent on pummeling the hell out of everything they have, which makes for a unique and often weirdly thrilling listen. There are a lot of ideas being thrown around here. That so many of them connect as strongly as they do on a record so unabashedly rooted in pop is a near-miracle. This record’s definitely flawed, but listening to it is too fun for anyone to really care.