Almost everyone has a journal, a place they lay the foundation of their thoughts. Whether it’s on paper or digitally constructed, their outlook on life is somewhere to be read. In Elliot Babin’s case, it’s somewhere to be listened to. His name’s familiar if you’re a fan of Touche Amore. He’s their drummer, but decided to get his two cents out in the form of a side project, Dad Punchers. That so happens to also be the name of the record he released late last year. So if you’d ever wanted to hear what runs through Elliot’s mind as he delivers it in an unpolished way, then you’ll love Dad Punchers.
Elliot’s voice in “Tire Swing” was like listening to Dave from Fireworks’ demos. It was very raw, and if you watched Dad Punchers live, I’m sure there’d be no difference. The whole album actually played like a live show. It had the mentality of punk, but at the same time was encased in this emo-ridden state of sadness and personal anecdotes. One of the best being the claustrophobia found in “Post- coital tristesse.”
Except for a couple good words and lines here and there, nothing really popped out to be while listening to Dad Punchers, that was until I came to “Cul de sac” and left it playing one too many times. It struck a personal chord with me because it is this song about growing up and the house you grew up in transforming from “home” to “your parents’ house.” Over Christmas I had the same realization and cried about the fact that I was now just a guest in the place I once hurried home from school to, but now I think they were actually happy tears.
If you like Touche Amore, then you’ll probably want to support Dad Punchers as well. But if you’ve never heard of Touche Amore and just want some new music that’s got a soft punk aspect to it that happens to be rolled in emotion, then check out Dad Punchers. Dad Punchers is out now on Sea Legs.
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