Broods: Don’t Feed the Pop Monster Album Review

posted February 6, 2019 in Arts & Entertainment by Scott Perdue.

Now with more control over their sound, the New Zealand sibling duo Caleb and Georgia Nott, better known by their stage name Broods, are back with their third studio album titled "Don’t Feed the Pop Monster."

Recently adopted by their new record label Neon Gold, Broods were given full reign over their sound and coincidently felt inspired to create their most unhindered personal aesthetic record to date.

The duo is best known for their songs “Heartlines,” “Bridges” and their addition to the dreamy pop track, “Ease” which they appeared on alongside their Australian pop artist counterpart, Troye Sivan. Broods have had a fairly respectable mainstream presence over the course of their rising career.

Originally releasing their first two albums with their initial record label Capitol, Broods felt limited by their contract and finally felt liberated when they were eventually released. Now under the new label, Broods can take jabs at the pop industry with an album that attempts to depart from the typical limitations of the genre.

Opening with the bright and mellow “Sucker,” Broods seems to go against its mission of not falling into the pop trap with this fairly rigid mainstream track. Somewhat stuck in the pop formula, the track is a sonic beat based, depressive lyric lifted song with not too much to offer outside of an undeniably pleasant sound.

The next track, “Why Do You Believe Me?” has a similar struggle, not necessarily a weak track, but very much still caught in the pop down spiral.

Broods are finally able to escape the pop blueprint, however. With “Peach,” an effervescent and bubbly track, it effortlessly glides past the typical pop pitfalls and assert itself as an interesting and pleasantly surprising display of the advertised Broods’ unfiltered sound.

Inspired by the sudden mood swings and rollercoaster of emotions often felt throughout our lives, this fizzy and multi-dimensional track is Broods’ attempt to capture the feeling of living life to the fullest while coping with the uncertainty of your early twenties.

The track is layered with several odd, out of the box sounds, as well as a variety of synths, both optimistic and depressive. Alongside the sound is a catchy, uplifting message of “I’m high and I’m low, no control. But everything’s looking peach now.”

The next track, “Falling Apart” is also rises above the limitations of the pop genre, with its slightly sorrowful lyrics juxtaposed with its light and sleepy retro robotic groove.

Having a few struggles with consistency, Broods unfortunately cornered themselves a few times and succumb to the dull pop formula on tracks such as “Everything Goes (Wow)” and “Everytime You Go.”

While these tracks are by no means bad or void of enjoyability, for a record which claims to break the mold and provide its listeners with something inventive and unique, these tracks just don’t quite make that leap.

Definitely containing more fulfillments of their mission than failures, tracks such as “Dust” and “Life After” create infectiously pleasant and soothing soundscapes which truly offer their listener something to return to.

Another memorable moment on the album is the chantable “Too Proud,” which allows Caleb to take the main stage while Georgia provides back up, a switch up of the Broods typical format. This sorrow-infused track speaks to the silent discussion of men bottling up their feelings and refusing to let people in.

One of the weaker points on the record is the desperate feeling in “Old Dog.” The song experiments with a playful quirky feel which doesn’t really fit with the rest of the album and is somewhat hindered by its odd lyricism, with lines such as: “Tried to wash off my fleas. Get your piss off my trees.”

While stumbling in certain areas on the record, overall Broods are able to successfully accomplish their mission by providing the listener with a decent amount of fresh and enjoyable tracks. They are able to rise above and distinguish themselves from the dragging down of the pop mainstream.

Broods showcases their brand new sound, making "Don’t Feed the Pop Monster" a successful statement to the duo’s emerging unique and distinctive style. Hopefully the two will be able to maintain this same experimental and creative music making process for their next release, while continuing to fight back the overwhelming feeling of needing to please the fickle pop mainstream.

Rating: 7/10

Reviewer’s Favorite Track: “Peach”

Reviewer’s Least Favorite Track: “Old Dog”

Scott Perdue is a sophomore majoring in Secondary Education. To contact him, email rsp5246@psu.edu.