Acid Reign’s “Daze Of The Week” Is Thrash With a Side-Eye (Sorry)

Acid Reign return with “Daze Of The Week,” a fun-but-fraught thrash record that sounds angrier than last time—and less sticky in the hooks.

Let’s Be Honest: This One Doesn’t Arrive Like a Victory Lap

You can feel the wait on “Daze Of The Week”—not in a grand, cinematic way, but in that slightly impatient “alright, show me what you’ve got” way. Acid Reign don’t exactly flood the world with full-lengths, so when another album finally lands, it comes with expectations baked in whether anyone admits it or not.

And here’s the thing I didn’t expect to say: I enjoyed myself, but I didn’t get that instant oh, this is going to live in my brain for a week hit. I kept waiting for the songs to tattoo themselves onto my memory the way the previous album did, and… they mostly don’t. Not because the band forgot how to play thrash, or because the energy is gone. It’s more annoying than that: the album is good in the moment, then slightly slippery after.

That’s the tension “Daze Of The Week” runs on—fun now, fuzzier later.

Acid Reign Still Don’t Sound Old—They Sound Slightly More Done With You

The first thing that jumps out is that Howard “H” Smith still performs like someone shook a can of soda and dared it to stay calm. He’s the lone original member left, and he doesn’t sound like he’s protecting a legacy. He sounds like he’s trying to start a minor riot in a room that barely deserves it.

What surprised me is the mood shift. Acid Reign have always carried that light-hearted, goofball reputation—party-thrash with a wink. But on this record, the wink turns into more of a squint. There’s a darker edge in the delivery, and not in a costume-y, try-hard we’re serious now way. It’s more like the same party, except now you’re noticing the sharp objects on the table.

I’m not 100% sure whether that darkness is intentional theming or just what happens when the band leans into harsher vocal attitude and bruisier pacing—but either way, the album keeps flashing that grim little undercurrent.

The Opening Run Feels Like a Good Time That Might Turn

Coming off the first pair—“The Who Of You” and Daze Of The Week—the album makes its pitch immediately: fast, chaotic, undeniably fun. The riffs move like they’ve got someplace better to be. The drums keep shoving the songs forward like they’re late for work. And H sounds less like a ringmaster and more like a guy taking inventory of everything that’s annoyed him this year.

Here’s my arguable take: those opening tracks are doing two jobs at once, and that’s partly why they don’t stick as hard. They’re trying to be classic party-thrash while also smuggling in something ominous. You can hear the fun, but you can also hear the clenched jaw behind it. That push-pull is interesting, but it dilutes the immediate anthem feeling.

On first listen I thought, Okay, this is going to be a pure ripper. On second pass, I caught myself thinking, Oh—this is a ripper that’s kind of glaring at me.

And yeah, that’s more compelling than endless nostalgia.

“No Truth” Is Where the Album Stops Smiling

If the front end flirts with menace, “No Truth” just walks in with it. This is the bruiser moment—the one that feels like it’s throwing elbows on purpose. H’s vocal comes off like he’s had a few too many pints and is actively looking for someone to give him a reason. It’s a convincing kind of ugly.

And honestly? This is where the album’s angrier than last time vibe becomes more than a vibe. It becomes a creative decision you can hear. The band isn’t dressing up as darker; they’re letting the edges show.

A reasonable listener could argue this is Acid Reign getting heavier. I’d argue it’s Acid Reign getting less interested in being lovable. There’s a difference.

“Old Young Man” and the Art of Sounding Like Something’s Off

Then there’s “Old Young Man,” which carries that same uneasy background feeling. Not everything is spelled out in big dramatic gestures—some tracks just feel like the lights are too bright and the room is too loud. That’s what this one does: it suggests something nasty is nearby without fully dragging it into frame.

This is where I admit I wobbled a bit. Part of me wanted the song to either go full unhinged or swing back into something more immediately hooky. Instead it sits in that suspicious middle ground. Depending on your taste, that’s either smart tension-building or a refusal to commit. I land closer to smart, but I can’t pretend I didn’t itch for a bigger payoff.

“Sorrowsworn” Feels Like the Darkest Thing They’ve Put Their Name On

“Sorrowsworn” is the point where the album stops feeling like party thrash with a couple of shadows and starts sounding like the shadow is actually hosting the party. If Acid Reign have ever written a darker track, I’m not hearing it here. This one plants a flag: same band, different temperature.

And the funniest part—funny in the observational sense—is that the album still reads as party-thrash overall. It’s just that now it’s the kind of party where a few guests are behaving suspiciously and you’re quietly wondering if you should leave before something dumb happens. You’re still having a decent time, but you’re also scanning the room like, Is this going to be fine? I think it’s going to be fine.

That uneasy blend is the album’s most distinctive trait, and also its biggest risk. Some fans are going to love the added bite. Others will miss the lighter snap.

The Catch: It Doesn’t Beat the Last One, and It Knows It

Here’s the bad news (and it’s mild, not catastrophic): “Daze Of The Week” doesn’t hit as memorably as The Age Of Entitlement. The bar was set high, and this record doesn’t clear it.

The specific problem isn’t performance—nobody sounds lazy. It’s the stickiness factor. The choruses don’t grab as hard. The riffs don’t glue themselves to your memory as often. I can hear a lot of parts that are satisfying while they’re happening, but fewer that I’m involuntarily humming later while doing something boring like washing dishes.

That said, I’m also not going to pretend that’s a dealbreaker. Plenty of thrash albums are fun in the moment and less instant gem on recall. The real question is what you want from Acid Reign right now:

• If you want more of the same, you’ll get it.
• If you want more of the same but angrier, you’ll really get it.
• If you want a set of choruses that haunt you, you might end up slightly annoyed.

And to be fair, I revised my first impression as the record went on. Early on I thought the album was going to be a straightforward good-time sequel. By the time the darker tracks had their say, it felt more like a deliberate pivot: still entertaining, just less eager to charm.

A Quick Word on What Works (Even When It Doesn’t Tattoo You)

Sliding from track to track, the album’s big strength is reliability. It doesn’t wander off into weird experiments, and it doesn’t try to reinvent thrash like it’s filing a patent. There’s a confidence in that—almost a stubbornness.

My arguable claim here: Acid Reign aren’t trying to impress new listeners on this record. They’re trying to give existing fans another night out, just with sharper elbows.

It’s not Katatonia-style gloom. It’s still lively. You can throw this on and have a good time with it. But it’s also not the kind of fun that begs for everyone’s approval.

Release Notes That Actually Matter

• Album: Daze Of The Week
• Artist: Acid Reign
• Label: Back On Black
• Status: Out now

And yes, the original write-up slapped a number on it: 7/10. That feels about right if you translate it into human language: worth your time, not their sharpest knife, still cuts.

Conclusion

Daze Of The Week lands as a sturdy, entertaining Acid Reign record that swaps some of the last album’s instant-stick hooks for a meaner glare and a darker undertow. It doesn’t outshine its predecessor, but it does something sneakier: it makes party-thrash feel like it might bite.

Our verdict: People who like their thrash fast, familiar, and a little angrier than necessary will have a great time here. People who need big chorus payoffs—and want Acid Reign to sound more “fun” than “fed up”—will walk away thinking, Wait, was that it? (and they won’t be totally wrong).

FAQ

• Is “Daze Of The Week” a big stylistic change for Acid Reign?
  Not really. It’s still party-thrash at heart, just with more shadow in the corners and less interest in being cute.
• What’s the main difference compared with “The Age Of Entitlement”?
  The newer album feels less instantly memorable—fewer choruses and riffs that cling to you after the listen.
• Which tracks set the tone early on?
  “The Who Of You” and “Daze Of The Week” kick things off fast and chaotic, with a surprisingly ominous undercurrent.
• Where does the darker edge come through most clearly?
  “No Truth” hits like a bruiser, “Old Young Man” feels suspiciously tense, and “Sorrowsworn” goes the darkest.
• Who is Howard “H” Smith on this album?
  He’s the singer and the sole remaining original member, and he sounds energized—just noticeably angrier this time.

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