The Daily Spin II

Djo | DECIDE

Welcome back to the Daily Spin. For the uninitiated, this is the series in which I review an album every day of 2025.

As was the case two years ago, my favorite song from each album can be found at the playlist linked here.

Album: DECIDE (2022)

Artist: Djo

Link:

Better known for his starring role in Netflix’s hit series Stranger Things, Joe Keery moonlights as Djo - in his words, ‘his name with a wink’. Despite the visual appearance of the Djo character, all seventies schlock with an unfortunate bowl cut, it’s a fitting moniker considering the slick production that belies pretty much every track on DECIDE.

It’s this production that really shines across a multitude of genres - from the glitzy pop of ‘Change’ to the new-wave sensibilities of ‘Runner’ and ‘Climax’ to the hyperreal ‘Go For It’, Keery is unafraid to go for it. In roughly half an hour, he bounces from Daft Punk to Tame Impala with pitstops at Kavinsky, Talking Heads, and a little bit of Prince. The journey is wild, untamed, and never boring.

Aside from some clunky lyrics and a few songs that feel misplaced within the record - ‘Fool’ breaks the immersion pretty badly and was the only sore point at which I felt I was actively pulled out of listening - there’s almost nothing to dislike here. Multi-talent feels very apt here.

Rating: 9/10

Best Tracks: End of Beginning, On and On, Change

Worst Tracks: Fool