Having put Indonesian Junk on hold, Daniel James resurrected his old punk band Chinese Telephones in 2024. At the point where it seemed that might be his main focus for a while, the ever restless musician appeared with a new band The Daniel James Gang at the beginning of 2025. Their debut EP mixed garage rock with power pop and a pinch of proto-punk to deliver something high on energy, and occasionally even bigger on grit. The material didn’t all work to the musicians’ best advantage – ‘Misery’ (written before the Gang were in place) – felt as if James were just marking time, looking for new inspiration, but the title cut ‘Darkness Over This Town’ introduced far more of a power pop influence than James had explored before, and this lean towards broader melodies really helped most of the new material to stand out.
Almost two years on, ‘Ghosts From The Past’, as its title suggests, explores even more of a retro sound in places, and two of its four tracks really make good on the power pop elements shared by the Gang on their previous release.
‘(Breakin’) What Hearts Are Made For’ kicks off the short release with a garage rock/power pop hybrid that borders on classic James. The opening riffs and grubby sounding lead break are pure Johnny Thunders/CBGB’s rawness, infused with a little of Dan’s infectious energy, and those elements are pretty much all that’s needed to make this number fly. Dig a little deeper, however, and you’ll discover a couple of superb bridges that borrow from even older rock ‘n’ roll stock – very much showcasing the Gang’s sparkier side – but these moments, too, are outshone by a strong chorus where the garage rock subsides and a more melodic power pop tone takes a hold, providing a perfect fit for some enthusiastic gang vocals. A couple of listens should be all that’s needed for a massive lyrical hook to stick, and as always, that’s enough to make it much easier to overlook some of Daniel’s vocal limitations. In fairness to this now veteran of US punk ‘n’ roll, he sounds more confident now than he ever did on those Chinese Telephones releases, and certainly better than he did on the Indonesian Junk debut.
Taking a far more melodic turn, ‘Artificial Romance’ drops squarely into the realms of old school power pop, with a full compliment of ringing guitars and buoyant basslines. The music finds the band sounding far more mature than before, and when shifting from a jangly mid tempo and into an upbeat instrumental section where fiery guitars share semi-sloppy riffs with the utmost glee, everything sounds terrific: familiar yet still exciting; wantonly retro, yet still sounding great in the present. The way the melodic core is offset by a Joey Ramone-ish drawl is classic Daniel James too, and in taking the more melodic aspects of Indonesian Junk’s later works to new heights, this is easily one of his best recordings to date.
That could have had the effect of making the rest of this release appear to come up short. Thankfully, ‘Insanity’ clings onto a similarly melodic heart, with a world of ringing guitars calling back to Flamin’ Groovies records, before a punky middle eight – powered by louder drums and gravel toned vocals – provides a stronger connection with some of Daniel’s past works. The music is great, but if anything sticks, it’s a well placed, rather smooth backing vocal, loaded with enough la-la-las to give the impression that this could easily be some unearthed treasure from the 70s. In closing, ‘Drunk Like Me’ opens with a killer retro riff, not a million miles away from the Ramones channelling Ph*l Sp*ct*r, before retreating into a little more of a comfort zone with Dan and his cohorts dropping into riffs that sound like older Thunders/Heartbreakers fare. A slurred vocal is initially jarring, but given the track’s narrative (possibly inspired by the writer’s own battles) this is a deliberate stylistic choice. As things gain momentum and a chorus brings far more melody and a more typical James Gang group vocal, the song holds its own, sharing a catchy garage rocker that brings most of the band’s chief influences together rather well. For those who aren’t yet part of Daniel’s committed fan base, the vocal will certainly take a little more work to appreciate, but it’s worth putting in the time to get the listening rewards.
As with a lot of Dan’s previous works, once you get past his abrasive vocal style, the material really pops. The choruses bristle with life, and the band delivers enough hooks to potentially win over any previous doubters. ‘Artificial Love’ and ‘Insanity’ make it worth the time, but all four tracks bring something of interest to the growing Daniel James catalogue. He isn’t the most prolific writer, but as the best tracks on ‘Ghosts of The Past’ show, James knows when he has something worth sharing. A recommended listen.
October 2026