Album Review: Daytrader - Twelve Years

Daytrader is dead... When Crime in Stereo called it quits in 2010 pretty much every fan was heartbroken but at the same time curious if the members would come up with new projects. It didn't take long before Daytrader was born and they even released a 3 song demo till the end of that same year. The demo was accepted really well by both fans and critics from the punk community. It was like a breath of fresh air in a scene full of pop punk bands influenced by Blink 182 and New Found Glory.

Even though Daytrader's sound was far from the hardcore one, you could tell the guys were in that scene long enough to be able to create something that both punk kids and hardcore kids would enjoy. The first band that came to my mind when I heard Daytrader was Saves the Day from their Through Being Cool era which is pretty good given the fact they don't sound like this anymore. Daytrader had this 90s touch to their music which I love so much.

Yes, they broke up in 2012 after releasing one of the greatest records of the year - Twelve Years on Rise Records. Daytrader was active for only 2 years but they managed to release a demo, an EP and a fulllength. The demo alone was enough to set up pretty high expectations for this young band and they met them all in 2011 after releasing their EP Last Days Of Rome.

Twelve Years is an album that needs some time to grown on you even if you are a fan of the band’s previous work. But once it does, it will stay in your favorites for a long time. The first song on the record is "Deadfriends" and it is as catchy as the songs from the demo and the EP. One could easily say that Tym's voice is the one thing that separates Daytrader from all the other bands in the genre and that would not be so far from the truth. Lyrically Daytrader are also very, very strong:

"And don't you ever say we're destined to be great It ended up exactly how it's supposed to be That same old classic story"

"Whether it's love or drugs or drinks, lust or vanity Just take what you need but don't let your vices bring you further down with them"

"Move on Move on to the heart that will beat in rhythm It shakes and stutters in its pacing Still breathing fire, I'm still breathing flames But will it be changing? What can you find when there's nothing to see through? How can sing when there's nothing to speak through? How can you breathe when your body's working against you?"

And this is just a small part of what you are going to experince with that record. Songs like "Skin and Bones", "Struggle With Me" and "Heard It In A Song" are almost making this a clasic. My personal favorite would be "Letter to a Former Lover". Maybe because it is the last one or because is a "letter" it reminds me of Shelter's second to last track on Mantra - "Letter to a Friend". Both songs are really strong and have amazing lyrics. This is part of the Daytrader's one:

"Hope you make it on your own Hope you find the direction you need to go Though our ups and downs were frequent and intense Like when I wrote that letter It said I love you to death You know our tragic stories are the best damn ones to tell If you hear this song some time from now I hope it finds you well"

So there is no more Daytrader now and Tym has a new project called Some Stranger which I'm really eager to hear. Crime In Stereo are back but only for shows...Whatever these guys do in the future I'm sure I'll like it, but Daytrader's Twelve Years will forever stay as one of the best records I have the pleasure to listen to.