Kid Dynamite - Living Daylights

After the 1997 breakup of Lifetime who were a huge influence on a lot of the bands to come, guitarist Dan Yemin formed Kid Dynamite, whose 1998 self-titled debut remains one of the finest melodic hardcore albums of the '90s. In 2000, they got ahead of all the fans and critics who would've surely called their sophomore album "shorter, faster, louder" by naming the album that, and this 18-song, 24-minute collection very much lives up to its title. Their label Jade Tree called it an "album so straightforward, precise, and skillfully executed, it probably had to be their last," and it's hard to disagree with that too. Dan Yemin would go further in a hardcore direction with his next band Paint It Black, while vocalist Jason Shevchuk would get even more melodic with his next band None More Black, but Shorter, Faster, Louder sat right on top of that fence between pop punk and hardcore, leaning over towards one side and then back to the other but never jumping fully onto one side. It has all the grit and attack of a true-blue hardcore record, but within Jason Shevchuck's gravelly shouts were bright melodies that any of the major label bands would've been jealous of.

The track I am sharing is Living Daylights. They have great gang vocals and some cracking melodies.