Listen, I’ll be upfront. I was ten when Diesel Boy released their last album “Rode Hard and Put Away Wet”, and I initially didn’t hear it until I was 19. So that, for me, made this period of longing for new material a little shorter. I’m 31 now, so the period here isn’t as intense as many have waited. But still, like many, I couldn’t help but wonder what had happened to the band. With Gets Old, Diesel Boy are back, and the past 22 years have benefited from their break.
If we look at the opener ‘Lost Decade’, it could come off as the average punk song. But they take the piss out of themselves and give fans a sense of what they’ve been up to since they’ve been gone. “Is it a reunion if no one cared we were gone or that we’re back?” and those lyrics are funny.
This quickly became my favourite song. ‘Viking Funeral’ starts with what I imagine is Gjallarhorn, but I’m pretty sure it’s regular horns playing. The lyrics are heavy and could hint towards a break-up that left someone with a heavy heart afterward. ‘Corpse Paint Blues’ is a pretty pop-punk song about some nice coffee shop and dreaming about suburban life. I felt this song was grown up, longing for the earlier years when things seemed simpler. ‘Two Stones’ hits differently. Lyrically it seems somber, and while the rest of the album hasn’t been “light” on the lyrics, to be honest. The guitar solo and the sound overall remind me of an 80s song. Friends, this may very well be one of the nicest album-closers I’ve heard this year.
22 years is what it took for Diesel Boy to return, and I hope they don’t take another 22 years to release a new album. Because this was fun to hear from them, I think it’s a good comeback album, and no matter what they sing in ‘Lost Decade’ I care that they are back! And you should be too! Check out this album; if you’re at Brakrock this week, remember to check them out!
9/10