The ways in which post-hardcore has developed in recent years seems almost comparable with many emerging hardcore bands of the late 80s and 90s who demonstrated an openness to exploring lengthier song structures and emphasis on melody. In some ways, the post-hardcore genre tag, which has encompassed a lot of variation as well as celebration from both underground and mainstream circles, has found itself coming full circle. Now, a number of recent bands coming out of modern hardcore and punk’s recent waves continue to push the envelopes, attracting audiences of many varieties. Darko fits such a loose description well, and their colourful palette of contemporary hardcore that utilises a range of interesting, loosely fitting punk genres like skate punk and mathcore. The Surrey, UK-born five piece have remained a consistent and prominent contender of punk’s global scene: releases during the band’s formative years like From Trust to Conformity (2012) and Sea of Trees (2014) exhibited mean hooks and chant-like melodies whilst the band’s later records, which have seen the addition of new vocalist Tom West, implicate a wider genre range to be experimented with. Darko’s latest EPs have developed more of an experimental post-hardcore style with Sparkle (2022) and Greyscale (2024); now the third chapter, Canvas, looks to continue this expansive approach to hardcore with elements of post-rock, electronic punk, and mathcore taking the helm.
The record debuts an emotive opener in “Grey Havens” – a poignant and atmospheric two-minute, shoegaze-inspired intro that opens a conceptual EP with some gripping melodic guitar textures and tense riffage. This falls seamlessly into “Dared to Dream”, a throwback to old-school 90s post-hardcore/skramz. The vocals soar with grandeur along fast tempos and express a passionate vigour. The melodic nature of this track is further emphasised in the lead guitar line that plays over energetic power chords, gleaming reminiscent of classic At the Drive In and Thrice song structures. The title track “Canvas” takes a more hi-octane approach by emboldening these melodic sections with more aggressive, math-infused passages. The blend between aggro and serenity is surprisingly well combined and this can really allow one to commend the musicianship which is on display: for instance, we can get a moment of hostility, where the rhythmic accompaniment unleashes an element of fury, subtly merge into a powerful, ballad-like chorus where we hear these sweet Midwest-style bridges that allow the piece to flow with some satisfaction.
“Override” takes us to the midpoint with an explosive delivery from the opening vocals that resemble some stadium rock qualities – usual for this record, for sure, but absolutely impressive considering the wide range of notes that West is able to hit to construct the EP’s roaring ballad tune. “Hectic”, on the other hand, is a brutal, Dillinger-esque mathcore track that lasts just over a minute and hangs on to high volumes of dissonance. The penultimate track, “Goodbye Bastards”, takes things back to that wistful and high-energy post-hardcore. Not much is new that hasn’t really been heard already but it’s fair to say that there is a lot of virtuosity throughout that hasn’t been mentioned too much in general. The fast, syncopated percussive elements hit with precision over the insanely complex riffs that take on some highly progressive directions yet, on the final track “AUX III”, they maintain a level of simplicity by leaning towards the classic punk characteristics reminiscent in skate punk and melodic hardcore.
For a band with such a rich and coherent discography that runs back over 15 years, my initial thought when listening to Darko for the first time was ‘How is this band not bigger?!’ There is so much on show, from the technicality of the musicians’ sound to the throwback mismatch of classic punk genres played with practically identical level of authenticity to that of Thrice, Refused, Propagandhi, and Silverstein. Whilst Darko’s preferences for how they approach their songwriting has arguably shifted with their recent run of EPs, they are looking to continue hitting their stride and gradually building their fanbase both within and outsides the confines of punk and hardcore’s boundaries.
