Seattle's finest garage punks hit the bullseye with this new album release!
Critically acclaimed Seattle-based band The Darts have been busy, and following a decade of heavy touring across the USA, Europe and beyond, they are now ready to unleash a new album upon the masses. This record celebrates All Hallows Eve in their own, customary, garage / horror-punk kind of way. The Darts realised that this annual spook-a-thon needed more songs to commemorate the event, and the result is ‘Halloween Love Songs‘, which is due for release on March 3rd. Recorded at Station House Studios in L.A, and produced by Grammy award- winning Mark Rains, this 13-track release sounds like a hauntingly winning recipe..
The Darts are :
Nicole Laurenne – Lead vocals, Farfisa organ, piano, Hammond organ, wurlitzer, mellotron, music box, glockenspiel.
Rebecca Davidson – Guitars.
Lindsay Scarey – Bass, screams.
Rikki Styxx – Drums, tambourine, percussion, screams, dog bowls.
Nicole Laurenne tells us that Side A of the album tries to encapsulate the early evening party spirit of Halloween, whilst Side B is strictly for after dark sessions. It’s game on then, as the first song we encounter is entitled, ‘Midnight Creep’, which was the lead-off single from this new 13-track album. It features a creepy music box intro, before kicking into some quality rock n roll/surf music for everyone (including the undead) to enjoy. A nice guitar hook is also on display, as well as an organ solo straight out of an episode of The Addams Family.
‘Zombies On The Metro‘ follows hot on its heels, with its distinctive retro keyboard sound and an incredibly catchy chorus to scream along to.
‘Apocalypse‘ is the latest single to be released prior to the album, and it’s a pure rocker of a song, in an almost Jim Jones Allstars style. It’s an obvious single choice in its catchiness, and it boasts an enjoyable bass, drum and vocal breakdown. Nicole states, “This Is The Apocalypse!”, followed by an almost Middle Eastern guitar break. Apparently, this song was born out of Angers in France, after Nicole wandered through a huge medieval tapestry. She suddenly realised there was liberation in burning it all down. Freedom from suffering, freedom from crowns. “The lightning bolt struck me. The song practically wrote itself in the van, as we left the castle,” Nicole says.
‘The Devil Made Me Do It’ is up next, which slows things down a little, with its almost Hives-like, clean guitar sound. At times, this album reminds me of what it must sound like, if the B52’s were jamming with The Munsters.. that’s a good thing in my book.
‘Darkness’ signifies the graveyard shift segment of the album, where the song slows things down, for all you night owls out there. I can even detect the sound of a glockenspiel in the mix.. ‘Up In My Soul‘ brings the sound of The Cramps to the table, with Rebecca Davidson conjuring up a guitar sound to die for.
Buy / download your copy of ‘Halloween Love Songs‘ HERE
- Midnight Creep
- Zombies On The Metro
- Blood Runs Cold
- Vampires In Love
- Dream Ghost
- Every Night Is Halloween
- Apocalypse
- The Devil Made Me Do It
- Darkness
- Up In My Soul
- Haunt Me
- Shadow
- Late Drive
Follow The Darts on Their Socials:
Need more Punk In Your Life?
Live review: Drunktank, Tape It Shut, Reason To Leave and Launch Control at The Butler, Reading 8/3/2026
How about a quiet Sunday afternoon in the English town of Reading? Nah!! Top local promoters Shadow Promotions DIY are putting on four punk bands
Live review: The Bones, Blisterhead and S.L.U.G. at Plan B, Malmö, Sweden 7/3/2026
Last Saturday night in Malmö, Sweden was legedary punk’n’rollers The Bones’ first outing this year, supported by skatecore youngsters S.S.U.G. and street punks Blisterhead. As
Interview: Alex catches up with Mel of hardcore stalwarts Emergency Broadcast
It’s been a while since we heard hardcore that combines brawn and brains as well as London-based quartet Emergency Broadcast do on new EP ‘Make
Album review: Darkwave crew Fotocrime release ‘Security’
Harnessing the fury of Killing Joke and the man-vs-machine churn of Ministry for a new era, Fotocrime release their fifth album ‘Security’ on Friday 13th
Baz Warne’s autobiography – ‘No Grass Grows On A Busy Street: 25 Years On The Road With The Stranglers’
An intriguing, in-depth portal into Baz’s experience as guitarist and singer of one of the world’s best known bands, we become absorbed by tales of
Live review: Screeching Weasel / El Sancho / Square Shapes / The Noids, Honolulu, 28/2/26
Screeching Weasel recently played their first ever shows in Hawaii, with The Noidz, Square Shapes, and El Sancho in support on the Saturday. Our newest
I have been writing reviews for Brighton & Hove News, and more recently Vive Le Rock magazine for a few years now. Previously, I could be spotted playing drums for many a band over the decades. A noisy habit developed whilst wearing short trousers at school, and one that has had me touring around the UK and Europe. Punk rock is my life, but I am also quite eclectic. I am an avid gig go-er and music devourer, and can feel out of sorts if a gig date is not on the horizon. I have also been known to put gigs on myself in order to fill those gaps.
Did you know that we are 100% DIY? We run our own game. No one dictates to us, and no one drives what we can or cannot put on our pages – and this is how we plan to continue!
