The Dust Coda
They all like AC/DC, they’re not always on 11, they spent lockdown getting a record deal, they’ve played some unusual gigs…
Words: Polly Glass
SOME SINGERS HONE their performances with hot beverage concoctions, for others it’s yoga, breathing exercises, or necking a few shots preshow. For John Drake, powerhouse vocalist with rock’n’roll four-piece The Dust Coda, it’s boxing.
“I’ve been doing it for about seven months,” he says. “It’s very similar, for me, to performing on stage, because you have to think about what you’re doing with your hands, playing the guitar, your feet, your focus…”
Right from the beginning, with their no-bullshit debut in 2017, The Dust Coda have punched consistently high. New album Mojo Skyline is a case in point. Songs kick, sway and swagger in all the right places without being formulaic, while hat-tips to Guns N’ Roses and Soundgarden (softer moments and shitkickers) feel like extra spicing, not crutches.