The Glow is the 3rd album by Australian band DMA’s, released on 10 July 2020. Even though they’re Australian, they have heavy British ’90s influences, from bands such as Oasis and The Stone Roses. This even applies to the Liam-esque voice of frontman Tommy O’Dell and the look of the band. This had led to them featuring at festivals such as TRNSMT in Scotland, inciting the same lager-soaked madness as Oasis gigs.

Their first two albums, Hill’s End from 2016 and For Now from 2018, are full of these Britpop influences. I would recommend tracks such as “Lay Down” and “Too Soon” to any Oasis fan. Even though these are great songs, they are highly derivate. If DMA’s kept churning out these songs, I would lose interest quickly.

They released the song “Life Is a Game of Changing” in early 2020. This was the first song I heard by them and it blew me away. I always thought they were a simple Britpop style band and this electronic dance song greatly intrigued me.

The Glow album that followed is a great mix of new dance explorations and their usual rock n roll sound. It is produced by Stuart Price, famous for his work with Madonna and Kylie Minogue, which shows their willingness to try new things. Here’s a track by track review of the record.

*album cover

Never Before – the album kicks off with this groovy and hypnotic track, reminiscent of bands like The Stone Roses and The Charlatans. Once again, it is highly derivative, but it’s a sound I’m very fond of. It is a great opening to the album, as it does have a typical rock band sound, but with acid house influences.

The Glow – a more simple guitar-pop track, typical of the band. However, the production still has an electronic edge, with synths melding into the massive sound. I don’t like the generic chord progression of the pre-chorus, but the pleasant chorus makes up for it.

Silver – the band are known for their big ballads, and this might be their finest. The track builds and builds to a euphoric crescendo of not one, but two huge choruses. The wall of guitars at the end showcases some neat shoegaze influences as well.

Life is A Game of Changing – the aforementioned track is easily my favourite on the album. It sounds like a duel between New Order and Oasis, which somehow works. Once again, the track becomes a wall of sound at the end, and the combination of reverb-drenched guitars and synths is very dreamy. It is a great mix of a rock band sound with electronic beats.

Criminals – one of my least favourites on the album. The song has a section which I find cringey, with weird electronic vocal effects that you hear in many modern pop songs. However, the rest of the track is a nice Verve type song, with nifty bass work.

Strangers – a nice Smiths style song with great guitar parts. The song has another anthemic Britpop chorus and would fit in on the earlier albums.

Learning Alive – easily my least favourite on the album. The song is a piano ballad with the cliche chord progressions that I dislike. Not my style of music at all!

Hello Girlfriend – another simple breezy guitar pop track, very reminiscent of the Stone Roses. Some quirky lyrics too which I appreciate. A song that could fit on the earlier albums again.

Appointment – another chill ballad, with a great Johnny Marr style riff, as in Strangers. One of my favourites.

Round and Around – a swaggering rock track with a monster chorus. Some subtle dance elements too, with the breakbeat pattern on the drums and ’90s Madchester sounds.

Cobracaine – an experimental end to the album. In my opinion, the album very much still has a guitar band sound. However, the two tracks “Life Is a Game Of Changing” and this one dive-deep into EDM sounds. This track has electronic beats like the former and builds up to a massive beat drop. There’s even some autotune in parts, which I’m not a fan of (I would turn the volume up and down during the brief heaviest autotune part in the choruses). This ends the record on an exciting and futuristic note.

Overall, this is a strong release and my favourite from the band so far. They followed it with How Many Dreams? in 2023. This features a similar mix of dance and rock sounds, flirting more heavily with the former. The track “De Carle” is bonkers and sounds like a menacing Prodigy track. They are doing a 10 year anniversary tour of their first album next year. I think a pure rock n roll album next time around would be a nice change of pace, but I’m curious about whatever they decide to do.