Hall of Fame Looking back on Dananananaykroyd’s ‘Hey Everyone!’

Combining endless sub-genres into a bright pink, gooey ball, this debut bottled up pure, unadulterated fun.

Words: Will Richards
1st September 2016

Has there ever been a better way to state your intent as a band than crashing into your debut album yelling your band name, over and over, before a flamboyant “HIYA!”, and a first song with enough force to kick down a door?

Enter Dananananaykroyd (is that enough nana’s?). The Scottish rabble released their debut full-length ‘Hey Everyone!’ off the back of their extremely promising ‘Sissy Hits’ EP from the year before, and cemented the faith so many had put in them.

‘Hey Everyone!’ is remarkable, in that it dips into so many sub-genres of indie rock without any of these experimentations feeling gratuitous. Even in ‘The Greater Than Symbol & The Hash’ alone, there’s thrashing hardcore, something approaching soaring post-rock, and bouncing, rhythmic guitar pop.

The band’s capacity to write a pop hit was never in doubt either - ‘Black Wax’ remains a fists-in-the-air hit, without being resigned to #indieamnesty territory, and even when Dananananaykroyd may be a band that many have forgotten, or rarely think of, when they are looked back upon it’s with a smile and not a cringe.

Dananananaykroyd may have only existed as a band for five years, but what days those were.

The album’s crowning glory has to be ‘Pink Sabbath’, and the track title is a perfect, concise description of the band; packing a punch, but remaining saccharine-sweet. ‘Hey Everyone!’ manages to maintain the perfect balance between playful, tongue-in-cheek jokiness and crushing sincerity, when they yell “these are the days of our lives” on ‘Hey James’. Dananananaykroyd may have only existed as a band for five years, but what days those were.

There are so many styles employed on ‘Hey Everyone!’ - all switched between at lightning speed - and it should make for a disjointed, difficult listen on paper, but the sense of unadulterated fun running through the whole thing makes it anything but, showing hardcore at its most playful.

Dananananaykroyd became famous for inciting a ‘wall of hugs’ at their gigs - a way more fun - and significantly safer - take on the wall of death, and ‘Hey Everyone!’ is the sonic equivalent of exactly this. It’s a complete joy to look back upon.

For all the rest of DIY’s Hall of Fame coverage, head here.

Tags: Dananananaykroyd, Hall Of Fame, Features