New Zealand duo Broods is back with their third album, Don’t Feed the Pop Monster. In case you haven’t heard of them, Broods is an alt-pop duo comprised of siblings Georgia Nott and Caleb Nott. They have been on the music scene for a few years, and recently opened for Taylor Swift’s Reputation Tour in New Zealand and Australia. Last year they worked on individual projects. Georgia released Vol. 1 of The Venus Project, which I reviewed here (and according to Spotify, listened to for 60-something or 70-something hours), and Caleb released a single under the stage name Fizzy Milk. On this album, according to a New Zealand Herald article, they’re experimenting more than ever. According to an interview Caleb and Georgia did with The Spinoff, the sound of this album is nostalgic, incorporating sounds from the music of their parents’ time and from when they were in high school. Listen to Don’t Feed the Pop Monster, and read below for my thoughts on the album track-by-track:
1. “Sucker”
“Sucker” might actually be my favorite track from the album. It gives me an 80s vibe I really love, from the synth to Georgia’s vocals. I feel like it can match so many moods, from feeling on top of the world to down in the dumps to full of angst. This song feels like something you can carry around and always be in the mood to listen to. This song definitely captures the nostalgic mood mentioned earlier from lyrics to sound.
Favorite line: “Almost lost myself just trying/To be like somebody else/I can never get it right/Guess it’s just something I can’t help”
This song reminds me more of Brood’s previous sound, which was fun to hear. It’s moody and succinct with its short lines and punctuating beats. I think its placement in the track listing really works as well, acting as a counterpoint to the sound of the next song.
Favorite line: “Why do you believe me when I say I’ve got it all?/Maybe ’cause I laugh and get back up each time I fall”
3. “Peach”
This was the first single released from the album back in August 2018. If you want to watch the music video for “Peach,” it’s really fun and really weird. This song is so energizing to listen to. It’s upbeat and catchy. It’s a great reminder that even if things look bad now, they’ll eventually get better.
Favorite line: “I’m high and I’m low, no control/But everything’s looking peach now”
This is another one of my favorites from the album. It’s such a moody piece, and perfectly envelops a nostalgic vibe. I also love the questions the lyrics raise later on in the song.
Favorite line: “There’s a fault in the system/So much talk, but no listen/So much empathy missing”
In case it hasn’t been super obvious throughout, I’m no music expert by any means. I’m just here writing about the newest album of one of my favorite music artists. So the best way I can think of to describe the sound of this song is wavy, and that’s after I looked up a synonym for choppy because I didn’t think that word was right. There’s just a rise and fall to this song that I really love and a conciseness in the sound that I really enjoy. It’s mellow, but each part of it also sounds exact.
Favorite line: “Every time you go, I cry/Oceans pouring from my eyes”
6. “Dust”
Yet another gem from this album. As I mentioned in my Instagram story a few days ago, walking home listening to this song with the sun out and the surprisingly warm weather felt like I was in some teen indie movie. It’s the type of song you listen to when you want to daydream that you’re in a movie or in a music video as you walk or when you’re in the car staring off moodily into the distance. It’s fallen leaves and golden hues and coffee shops or broken hearts. You’re just gonna have to take my word on this, I don’t know how else to describe it.
Favorite line: “Feel like I’ve been walking forever/Waiting just to fall down a hole/I’ve been getting so jealous of Alice/And all the places that she got to go”
7. “Too Proud”
This song is marked as Caleb’s singing debut for the band, as he’s usually only involved in the music or background vocals. And let me tell you, this song is amazing. As mentioned in the New Zealand Herald article, this song is written by Caleb concerning his battle with depression over the last few years. The music video for “Too Proud” is also emotionally heavy (I cried watching it), and I’m going to give a trigger warning if you’re interested in watching, as it does show attempts at suicide. The song and the music video are so powerful. In the Instagram post announcing this video, the caption stated: “‘Too Proud’ is for everyone who has ever felt that stigma that mental health struggles are shameful. It’s NOT shameful…If you can relate to the feelings conveyed in this video and song please take care of yourself and don’t hesitate to reach out to someone who can help.”
Favorite line: All of it, but if I had to choose “Too many times that I’ve been/Too proud to let it out”
8. “To Belong”
Honestly, I’m stumped for how to describe this song. It feels like a song you’d dance around to in a dark room with strobe lights until you realize how unbelievably dizzy you are. Maybe I’ll just leave it at that, and if you’re curious enough, you can listen and see if you agree with that statement. It’s not necessarily a song I’ll gravitate to when replaying songs from the album, but it’s a neat listen.
Favorite line: “Desert child, when she dances it’s the sweetest thing/Closest I have ever been/Beautiful inertia spin”
9. “Old Dog”
This song is so fun to listen to. It’s catchy, fun and edgy. The lyrics are telling you to take no shit, and the song won’t either.
Favorite line: “Even on the nights that nobody wants to hold me/I don’t need you to show (No)/Me how to be a lady/I’m an animal, baby”
10. “Hospitalized”
This song is also super fun to listen to because of its tempo and synth sounds. Broods also released a lyric video for “Hospitalized.” While watching the video, it totally made me think of Donté Colley’s motivational dance videos, and I just learned while writing this article that the dancer in the music video is Donté Colley! So if you’re in the mood to feel upbeat and inspired, watch the lyric video, and then listen to the song on Spotify a bunch of times. Also, if you’re like me and you’re wondering what the heck these lyrics mean, according to a Grimy Goods article, the song was originally inspired by a conversation where Georgia realized she’d never broken a bone in turn kind of wanted to break one to know what it was like, but it eventually took on to be a song about taking on pain to have something to place your feelings on.
Favorite line: “‘Cause I feel like I’m broken, but I’ve never got a reason/So I’m gonna jump, I’m gonna push myself until I get hospitalized” or “This bass is nutritious”
The music video for “Everything Goes (Wow)” is another strange vision, but it’s interesting nonetheless. It’s a song you’d listen to in the car; it feels relaxed and fun. It feels repetitive, but it adds to the vibe of the song more than anything.
Favorite line: “So when time slips away/All the love that I gave/Will be left on the walls/And I’ll live after all”
12. “Life After”
This is such a great song to finish the album with. It’s so moody; the verses give me Lana del Rey vibes, but then the chorus kicks in and brings this whole other element.
Favorite line: “I’ve been waiting for you/Since the day you were born/Thousands of years ago/Hope it makes you feel at home”
Final thoughts: This album was such a departure from Broods’ past sound, and a great evolution forward. It shows such growth for Caleb and Georgia. It brings new sounds, but also shows that they can take the sound associated with Broods a step further. Overall, I really enjoyed this album. I can’t wait to see this album come to life at their concert this year. I’m so excited to see what more we might hear from Broods in the future!
All lyrics in the “favorite lines” sections are from Genius.