Field Day – Acquisition LP (Little Rocket Records)

It’s time for the first review in 2023, and what’s a better way to start this year than with some melodic hardcore? Of course, you probably heard about Field Day. A band assembled by former Dag Nasty/Descendents members Peter Cortner and Doug Carrion emerged around 2019 and remained one of the most active bands during the pandemic. Since their inception, Field Day have released several singles and EPs such as 2.0, Why, and Opposite Land. Judging by their activities on social media, it seems they’re always up to something, recording something new or, at least, doing represses of their recordings on several record labels at once. As I said, you’ll rarely meet a hard-working band like Field Day nowadays, and they’re pushing their story through with so much energy and enthusiasm that many younger bands could look up to them and start practicing the same routine.

Acquisition collects all their previous recordings, plus a couple of new songs or maybe some compilation songs that I somehow missed along the way. You can perceive this material as their proper debut full-length or a compilation because it has all those characteristics. For those stumbling upon Field Day for the first time, their music resembles something Dag Nasty would eventually record during its career. Some of the finest properties of mid to late eighties DC hardcore bursts from their songs, and you can’t deny it. However, the band originates from Los Angeles, so their sound unquestionably carries some modern melodic hardcore, melodic punk rock, and some other complementary subgenres. The band combines healthy servings of aggression and dynamics with thoughtfully assembled themes and melodies that perfectly suit Peter Cortner’s vocal harmonies.

Besides Cortner’s and Carrion’s creative force, the remainder of the group fit nicely into this sonic equation, and it’s nearly mindblowing how the majority of these compositions shine bright with many brilliant moments. The powerful, cathartic choruses are probably their heaviest weapon in the arsenal, but Field Day know how to write songs where every segment sounds anthemic, catchy, and energetic. Besides all the ideas and intelligent lyricism, Field Day paid so much attention to the song structures, so there’s a flow that keeps your listening apparatus glued to this material from scratch to finish. Another thing that Field Day always pays attention to is the visual appearance. Besides a classic Wig Out At Denko’s symbol that follows all their releases, you’ll notice a slightly grungy, abstract aesthetics achieved by applying black, purple, and pink colors. The back side of the sleeve contains the tracklist and information about the participating record labels, while the inlay carries band photos, lyrics, and the thank you list. I must admit that this transparent neon pink variant perfectly suits the visual aesthetics, so Acquisition sounds and looks divine by all means. The album drops on January 23. For UK/EU pre-orders, please visit the Little Rocket Records web store. Don’t miss it!