I listened to Reckless & Relentless again today (because the first track on Dragged Under’s new EP sounds reminiscent of this disc - specifically Tony’s vocals).

I remember when this album came out. I was like 22 and about to go on my first deployment. I had never heard anything that hit me like this did (except for Stand Up & Scream, which I discovered in tech school after graduating basic). Danny’s studio vocals are fucking incredible. As is the mix/master of these early discs.

Despite already feeling fucked for all the people I dropped bombs on halfway around the world based on lies, after getting out, my best friend killed himself in 2018. Followed closely by my other childhood best friend. Followed, yet again, by another. I sunk into arguably the worst phase of my life - heroin, Dilaudid (iykyk), basically the most reckless self sabotage ever.

Some of my favorite music carries these themes. Self destruction, sorrow, loss, recklessness - but over the years I’ve come to believe that what you put in is what you get out.

It made me think about all the bullshit that Danny went through. Drug and alcohol addiction, legal problems, losing the band, inability to hang live with vocals and getting trashed by media (mainstream and social, alike). So much of his lyrical content (especially in the early days) is about self destruction. Singing that over and over and over is basically mixing intention with emotion to the words he’s yelling into existence.

I wonder why I am still so attracted to this kind of shit. The music that makes me FEEL the most, is usually this, NIN, and the like. I can’t help but wonder why that’s so tempting and if it really does have an impact on what we create in life. Why is there an itch that only songs like “Dear Insanity” even come close to scratching in my brain?

In light of one of his recent interviews, he's always loved the glam rock life. He went through the stereotypical period of drugs and alcohol with the Rockstar lifestyle. Not to mention went through emotional hell with their label and literally almost died twice from cocaine overdoses-stated in songs and hinted in film -American Satan- supposedly about AskingAlexandria early days. I think seeing some people he maybe admires, Axel Rose mainly for his performances lately as being awful, as a sign to take care of his vocals more and play it safe. As having experience, screaming while drunk or intoxicated is more taxing and your need to take care of yourself dimisnhes in order to finish a set. It can be damaging. So, Danny does the low ended country with some twamg, which is safer and Asking turns into a rock band like Three Days Grace, who throughout their releases, have very little screaming. He'd rather take care of himself now than be like Axel, 70 years old, charging $300 for a half ass performance. I admire that cause it takes a lot to realize when the need to handle yourself is more than the needs of others. I personally like both of his projects, country and metal. They both resonate with me. Hell, even Chris Motionless, whose 40, and another inspiration of mine, pulls back from screaming in recent performances and relies on Ricky and Justin more. No shame but age and life experiences take their toll on every part of the body.

And yes, he restrained himself to scream safe with a vocal coach but maybe something happened behind the scenes that scared him and didn't want him to push it anymore. Be grateful he doesn't retire altogether and still gives some performances. He plays acoustic Asking songs at his solo shows.

the Denis Stoff era was Asking Alexandria at their best.

The Black had everything I wanted from this band. It was heavy, aggressive, melodic, emotional, and still sounded like Asking Alexandria without trying to recreate Stand Up and Scream.

Denis brought a different energy that made the band feel hungry again. The screams were nasty, the cleans worked, and Ben Bruce was still there helping drive the identity of the band.

And the crazy part is we only got one album with that lineup.

People can prefer Danny, and I get it. He’s the original voice. But musically? I’ll take The Black era all day. I still wonder what AA would sound like today if Denis had stayed

https://www.tiktok.com/@justinstanek/video/7600187551130848542
I found this tiktok and at 2:02 there's a sneek peek, although the song is nowhere to be seen? Anyone knows what song that actually is or if it even is somewhere released?

Probably should’ve practiced a bit, but I think it turned out aight. One of my favorite vocal performances on any album I tried ! Lmk what yall think 🦀💛

my Gf's friend's old step dad at a christmas party in 2012

I hand't seen this short video, although it's not Aa.

Does anyone know when this zip came out around? I’ve found on instagram post saying 2011. Any help would be cool! ^_^

always will have a soft spot for the older stuff, but this song just hits different compared to anything else they’ve ever done imo

The first 3 albums are the only ones in the conversation for me.

For the love, if I didn’t have pictures of my sister or myself in it, I wouldn’t think that it exists. I CANNOT FIND IT ANYWHERE. I’ve even made a mock up from what I can remember. 2012-2014ish era.

Which songs from FDTD do you still play on repeat?

Been looking for this shirt for a while. Does anyone have it? or the red version? or would anyone know where to find it? any help would be great!

I wanted to post the video but it's 13+ min long so it would take an eternity to upload it (if it's even possible to post a video that long here). I encourage y'all to watch it

Edit: Here's a quick summary of what he talked about for those who aren't willing to sit through the whole video:

-His involvement with the band and what his role is currently: While he is not an official member of it, which he admits was a consequence of his sudden exit of the band back in the day, he loves making music with them and they feel the same way towards him. Also he clarified that the band isn't doing anything right know and he feels like the band does need a little break but he never mentions anything about the band ending permanently.

-He doesn't scream anymore: He said that it's not something that he enjoys and he respects anyone who either likes screaming or do screaming themselves and he isn't against AA's music having screams or heavy aspects in it, but he just doesn't scream anymore. He also maintains that he doesn't like AA's first two records but he stills loves them as part of their history and work.

-People saying he doesn't care about AA and only see it as a cash grab: First he clarifies that the money he gets from the band isn't as significant as people think and that he has many things going on aside from that. Second, he completely denies not wanting to be involved with the band and said that he loves both the band and the music they currently play, he even mentioned the fact that two songs from WDWGFH ("Where Do We Go From Here" and "Things Could Be Different") were originally songs from his solo project but the band asked him if they could use them for the record and he happily agreed. They are his friends and he loves playing music with them. He also said that these last few years have been a bit rough for him and he even mentioned that originally he was going to write more songs for WDWGFH (the 2 previously mentioned were the only songs he wrote) mostly using more of his solo work but the main theme of it was divorce and he thought that just wouldn't fit in an AA album so both he and the band decided to have someone else write more stuff for the album.

Danny had an interesting exchange with Ash Avildsen, founder of Sumerian Records, regarding Asking Alexandria, and I’m curious what everyone else makes of it.

First off, I love Asking Alexandria and I love Danny’s solo music, so this isn’t meant as a shot at Danny or the band.
Danny being a hired contractor technically isn’t new information. He was vocal about that arrangement when he returned in 2016. But despite that technicality, for years afterward he seemed genuinely invested in Asking again and seemed to enjoy his second tenure with the band.

That’s why his wording now stands out to me.
He says “I never rejoined the band,” emphasizes that he has no control, say, or involvement in the band’s business decisions or operations, and describes his involvement as basically them sending him an offer and him deciding whether to accept or refuse it.

Technically, that may have always been the arrangement. But why does he suddenly seem so intent on distancing himself from Asking Alexandria?

Especially after seeing how well Danny was performing and screaming again in 2023 and, to some extent, 2024, the change since then has been pretty noticeable. Removing Asking from his Instagram bio, the black hood onstage, the changes with his live vocals/backing tracks, essentially stopping screaming again, and now the way he publicly talks about his relationship with the band.

I feel like I’ve seen this coming for a while.
In some ways, it reminds me of where Danny seemed to be mentally before he left in 2015. Obviously the circumstances are different, and I’m not saying he’s leaving again, but there’s that same feeling of Danny Worsnop increasingly separating himself as an artist from Asking Alexandria.

Now Asking is taking a break this year. My assumption has been that Danny may be a big reason for that — wanting to focus on his solo career and possibly just being burnt out on Asking — although obviously none of us know that for certain.

Meanwhile, everyone seems to be doing their own thing. Sam and Cam are working on a heavier side project, James toured with Breaking Benjamin and has been doing YouTube content, and Danny is heavily focused on his solo career.

That’s what makes his response so strange to me.
I understand that he technically isn’t responsible for AA’s business decisions because he’s a contractor. But he’s still their vocalist. Whether or not Asking can tour or make another album obviously depends, at least in part, on whether Danny actually wants to participate.

So when he says whether the band “wants to work or not work” has nothing to do with him, how literally should we take that?

Maybe I’m reading too much into it, but between everything we’ve seen over the last couple of years and these comments, it feels like there’s a growing disconnect again.
Does anyone else see similarities to the buildup to 2015, or is Danny simply being very literal about a contractor arrangement that has existed since 2016?

I wonder what happened .. although, not the first time for him 😬