The phrase "dad rock" is our young century's go-to rock-critic insult, a cheap pejorative redolent of organic vegetables, sensible minivans, corny puns, tasteful guitar interplay, Steely Dan over-worship, and so forth -- the sound of settling.

Which is ludicrous, of course, and a disservice to dads everywhere. Because fatherhood is hardcore. The hours are gnarlier, the bodily fluids more plentiful, the range of emotions (unconditional love, unmitigated terror) more intense a...[more]