I've reviewed a lot of Brokedowns records over the years. First, I'll say I love the band and I honestly feel like they keep getting better. Second, I'll say that this record threw a couple of surprises at me.
The band play multi-vocalist poppish punk in the school of Dillinger Four or Errth, albeit more on the angry side. There are pop elements but it's aggressive and harsh in its general sound. If I have a complaint about the band, sometimes they get a little shouty, even though the band knows how to mix in a mean harmony. One of the surprises on the new Let's Tip The Landlord is that it features more vocal variety. Without going all soft on us, there is some actual, factual singing. The second surprise is the saxophone of "Infinite Flex" which...somehow is just perfect. Any long-running band with a defined sound can fall into the same-y trap, and elements like this really mix it up. Considering that all the songs are about two-minutes apiece, The Brokedowns are surprisingly good at mixing up tones on this 13-song, 28-minute album.
Let's Tip The Landlord is not a theme record, but it's steeped in toxic pop culture and politics, wherever that fuzzy reality TV line is drawn these days, using sound bites about Alpha Dog Serum X to highlight the disinformation campaigns that permeate our everyday lives. The Brokedowns are a political band at heart, but these aren't "It's 1989, stand up and take a look around" lyrics that will sound dated in two years. Instead, they blend satire and observation without relying on the headline of the day. Heck, they even have a lyric that references Kissinger and Idi Amin. While they aren't young pups, that's a reference I didn't expect, especially delivered in melodic fashion.
It's fast, furious and fun. And, if you listen closely, it's pretty depressing too. It's just what my limited attention span needed.
