Everybody likes surprises, especially when they’re nice. Rumours about possible new material from Brand New have been circulating for years - along with speculation that they will split in 2018 - but that didn’t detract from the shock when ‘Science Fiction’, the follow up to 2009’s ‘Daisy’, appeared from thin air a couple of weeks ago.
The band have teased their fans incessantly in the last eight years, balancing excitement and despair. They really know how to build up hope and dash it in one fell swoop. Even the release of ‘Science Fiction’ was shrouded in confusion.
Two days after a pre-order date was announced, a limited CD was sent out to 500 people containing the album in full as one track.
A vinyl release, we were told, would follow later in the year. And then, preamble be damned, it was there in full: available immediately as a download and soon after on streaming platforms.
It’s safe to say that only Jesse Lacey and company really know what’s going on but the fans have reacted, with the record peaking at top spot on the Billboard 200 a week after its official release.
‘Science Fiction’ sees the band refusing to be pigeonholed yet again. There is no tying Brand New down to one particular genre - they have been tarred with the alt-rock brush as often as they have emo and pop-punk - but none of these really seem apt as a standalone description of the band’s music.
This is something of an epic release, as the time taken to get it out there suggests. Its dozen songs chime in at a little over an hour and range from the softly-softly opener Lit Me Up to the rabble-rousing 451. They show the band on playful and spirited form.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone if the band do call it a day after ‘Science Fiction’, which is a massive return to form after the lacklustre ‘Daisy’, both sonically and lyrically. Much of the record sees Lacey engaged in quiet contemplation of life (literally, for the most part), including getting older and the trials and tribulations of touring and recording.
There are still moments of wild feedback, a stomping rhythm section and searing guitar riffs but ‘Science Fiction’ comes across as the sound of a band whose work here is most definitely done. More influential than many artists with a back catalogue three times the size, Brand New – if the t-shirts and statements are to be believed – can next year retire happy knowing that they’ve bowed out at the top of their game.
Brand New Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Thu November 16 2017 - DUBLIN Olympia
Sat November 18 2017 - LONDON O2 Academy Brixton
Sun November 19 2017 - GLASGOW O2 Academy Glasgow
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