I had the pleasure of witnessing the only previous appearance by DIIV in Brighton, which was at the Concorde 2 on 23rd September 2016, in support of the then latest unusually titled second album ‘Is The Is Are’. It was a rescheduled date from 28th March 2016, which was initially to be held at The Haunt. Now a return has been announced………..
The previous concert will always be remembered by myself and my colleague, as there was a band at the bottom of the three band bill that have certainly gone on to much greater things. Their name IDLES. Therefore I will be paying close attention to this new Brighton concert’s support band, ‘Chastity’. It certainly promises to be a great night out. The date for your diaries only happens once every four years, namely Saturday 29th February. The venue, the all new Haunt on steroids, CHALK.
DIIV will be playing Brighton as part of their 25-date UK and Europe ‘Deceiver’ tour, with our city being the last UK port of call, prior to hopping the Channel to Paris. ‘Deceiver’ being the third and latest album release. It’s a 10 track release and I would surmise that the most exciting version would be the mixed coloured vinyl edition that was limited to a mere 2000 copies worldwide.
DIIV was initially called Dive (after a 1992 Nirvana song) and was originally a solo project born in the Brooklyn bedroom of Zachary Cole Smith in 2011.But Smith decided to change the band name so as not to be confused with Belgian industrial artist Dirk Ivens’ solo project of the same name. When I saw them in 2016 their live lineup consisted of Smith on vocals and guitar, Devin Ruben Perez (bass), Andrew Bailey (guitar), Colin Caulfield (keyboards, guitar) and Ben Newman (drums). However, the latest ‘Deceiver’ album was recorded by Zachary Cole Smith (lead vocals, guitar), Andrew Bailey (guitar), Colin Caulfield (bass0, and Ben Newman (drums).
For ‘Deceiver’ the vibe got heavier than previous outings and reflects the various influences ranging from Unwound and Elliot Smith to True Widow and Neurosis. The band enlisted producer Sonny Diperri (My Bloody Valentine, Nine Inch Nails, Protomartyr), his presence dramatically expanded the sonic palette, making it richer and fuller than ever before. It marks a major step forward for DIIV. Cole has also ‘re-invented’ himself and traded in his surf dude haircut for a more closely shaven look. No doubt it’s his way of leaving his chequered drug-fuelled past behind him. However, I do hope that they continue to play my previous favourites from their 2016 gig, namely ‘Under The Sun’, ‘How Long Have You Known?’, ‘Dopamine’ and ‘Doused’.
No doubt there once again will be a moshpit, just as there was on the last occasion, especially as the new material is somewhat slightly heavier, but still majors on the jangly guitar sound. The lead single from the new album titled ‘Skin Game’ was released on 4th October – listen to it HERE.
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