Daggers have been building toward this version of the band for a long time. Formed in Brussels in 2007, the group went through several lineup changes before settling into its current lineup around 2012. That stability came naturally, rooted in long-standing relationships between members who had already been playing together across different local projects. “We’ve known each other for a very long time, and we’ve always been playing music together,” bassist Thomas tells No Echo. “It felt natural to start a new band together.”
While Daggers came out of the hardcore punk scene, they’ve never treated that as a boundary. From the beginning, the goal has been to pull from a wider range of influences and let the sound evolve on its own terms. “We never wanted to limit ourselves to a specific genre,” he says. “We blend all our influences to create music.” That approach has pushed the band into more progressive and experimental territory over time, without losing the intensity that defines their roots.
That balance is front and center on the band’s latest EP, El Mundo Kaput. For this batch of songs, Daggers made a conscious decision to strip things back while still holding onto their more expansive tendencies. “We wanted the songs to be rawer, faster, and more forthright,” reveals Thomas, pointing to a return to the band’s early energy, “but topped with that experimental vibe we love.”
To capture that, the band teamed up with Gilles Demolder (Oathbreaker, Wiegedood) at Jetson Studio in Kortrijk. The fit was immediate. “We knew he would be the right person to make those songs sound the way we wanted,” says the bassist. “He instantly got what we were aiming for, and the whole process felt very natural.”
Outside of the studio, Daggers are operating within a Belgian scene that continues to grow. “The scene has been doing really well over the past couple of years,” they say, pointing to a surge of new bands emerging since 2021. From post-punk to power violence, the region is pushing in multiple directions at once, with acts like Vaag, Flux, Dögmën, Crouch, and Bezette Stad helping define that momentum.
Daggers are also leaning into that same DIY spirit that’s long been part of their identity. Their latest video for “With Rue” was built entirely by the band, frame by frame, marking their first official music video after years of false starts. “We’ve always wanted to make a video for years, but the lack of money and time always got in the way,” Thomas tells No Echo. Filmed in their practice space and assembled through painstaking work between band members, the final result reflects exactly how they prefer to operate. “In Daggers, we always loved crafting things on our own.”
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El Mundo Kaput is out now on streaming outlets via Shield Recordings (vinyl pre-order).
Daggers on social media: Facebook | Instagram
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