I was super late on the Don Broco hype train. Emerging in the early 2010s, the group soon gained traction on their first two albums, Priorities and Superlove in 2012 and 2015, respectively. It wasn’t until 2018, with the release of Technology, that I finally got on board.
It’s fair to say that subversion of expectations was a huge factor as to why I did. For the most part, my knowledge of Don Broco up to this point painted more a picture of an alternative/pop rock band than whatever it was I just heard when I turned on this record. As, from the moment Technology started (with its eponymous track “Technology”), I was blasted with this heavy, chunky riff. Of course, not all of it was super heavy, but I think that immediately apparent dichotomy is what made it feel so special. Even in its less heavy moments, it was far from typical.
Safe to say, they had caught my attention. That pop rock influence I’d heard about was present to be certain, but there was something else going on here – something new. Among the track’s huge chorus, funky verses and boisterous vocals, sat this element of raw heaviness; this pure juxtaposition of that, that felt so fresh. The track ends strongly, too, coming out of nowhere with an astoundingly djenty breakdown. It was but a quick glimpse into the group’s heavy influences, but that made it no less stank-face inducing.
From that point, I was hooked. I knew I had to listen to this album’s monstrous one hour runtime back to front immediately. Throughout its 16 tracks – even on its more pop-centric cuts – it carries its heavy influence consistently, and remarkably well. This thing is replete with massive riffs and heavy production throughout, but further keeps that strangely unique marriage of that sound with the group’s more pop-esque stylings that grabbed my attention so hard in the first place.
Standout track “Pretty” wastes no time setting its tone, building quickly into its groovy, headbang-able riff as vocalist Rob Damiani aggressively belts “eight days a week, sucker, eight days a week”. Lyrically, the song follows the story of someone approaching an attractive woman at a bar, only to find out she’s horrendously racist, and not being able to step in and stop her due to being “far too gone”. Its lyrical content makes for quite an entertaining listen, even aside from its great instrumental, and it ends up as a major album highlight as a result.
Another element I adore about Technology is just how unapologetically laddish it is. Tracks like “Stay Ignorant”, “Porkies” and the aforementioned “Pretty” could only have been penned by a band quite as British as this, and I love that. The former track of which stands as one the largest examples, with Damiani chanting:
“Live like that, no, you can’t live like that
Sink some beers, watch the match.”
It feels like a tongue-in-cheek criticism of British culture, all the while carrying this quintessentially laddish aesthetic, with the vocals in the verses being delivered in a strong swagger-laden English accent, almost sounding like a one-man football chant. The track’s surprisingly infectious chorus serves as one of the album’s catchiest moments, too. The funky, heavy guitar work of Simon Delaney helps give the chorus this larger-than-life feeling to it, weaving in and out of complimenting the vocal melody and doing its own thing effortlessly.
“Porkies” further delves into the groups culturally laddish trappings even further, with its verses featuring Damiani donning what sounds like an exaggerated cockney accent while spouting off these vaguely threatening lines like “Few tall tales and you go giddy, me and my boys coming ‘round look busy”. Like “Stay Ignorant”, it all feels very tongue-in-cheek. The vocal and lyrical motifs seem to be an overblown, exaggerated view of British attitudes and culture, only made possible to pen by overexposure the kinds of people the group are imitating. As a Brit myself, it all feels very at home.
The album’s choruses as a whole are something to behold, too. “T-Shirt Song”, along with having a sweet brass section, contains a potently emotive chorus as Damiani sings “I wouldn’t be who I’d be without ya”. It’s genuinely quite a sweet song, seeming to be an ode to his love of live music, while also translating well as a stadium-chanting anthem. Further, “The Blues” has this groovy riff riding through its chorus that just makes the whole thing feel so wonderfully slick. The vocal performance on this cut shows Damiani’s range extremely well, too.
I could go on about each and every track here for hours, but there is simply too much content here to give every great track its own spotlight, so I’ll keep it short and sweet. Technology is a fantastic foray into what feels like a one-of-a-kind hybrid of unapologetically British pop rock and potently heavy post-hardcore. Fantastic riffs, huge choruses, unique vocals and great production & songwriting all work together to create a wonderful, if a tad lengthy, package that is absolutely worth a gander from anyone who’s on the prowl for something new.
Keeping in line with their spaced-out release schedule, the group recently announced their long-anticipated fourth studio album Amazing Things for release on September 17th via Sharptone Records. You can pre-order the record here, and make sure to keep your eyes locked on Boolin Tunes for our full review of the record in September. We’ll see you next week for another edition of the Staff Spotlight!