July 27, 2020
Wollongong Favourites, Hockey Dad’s highly anticipated third studio album, Brain Candy, features both ‘Itch’ and ‘I Missed Out’. The thirteen track album was produced, engineered and mixed by John Goodmanson at Robert Lang Studios (Bikini Kill, Blonde Redhead, Death Cab for Cutie, Los Campesinos) and was mastered by Troy Glessner (Alice in Chains, The Blood Brothers, Foo Fighters).
‘BRAIN CANDY’ – ALBUM REVIEW
REVIEWER – Ben Nicol
Hockey Dad have never been one to mess with the style of their songs, nor have they ever really needed to. Childhood mates Zach Stephenson and Billy Fleming have seen plenty of success bashing out their beachy, fuzz-filled rock tunes for past seven years, becoming a regular name on festival line ups across the land of Oz in the process.
With their third album Brain Candy, Windang’s favourite sons have taken a massive step forward as they edge even closer to perfecting a sound they’ve been experimenting with since their 2014 E.P Dreamin’. Rather than force any radical changes, Hockey Dad have zeroed in on what brought them to the dance in the first place, all the while introducing a some darker, more brooding elements to their music.
The end result is an evolutionary passage in Hockey Dad’s discography that has already garnered the boys plenty of popularity. I Missed Out was voted 60th on last year’s Triple J Hottest 100. Meanwhile, their latest release Good Eye – at the time of writing – is the most played song currently getting airtime on Triple J’s radio station.
Over the past few months, we have been drip fed almost a third of the songs that feature on this album but there are still plenty of quality new tracks on Brain Candy to make this album a must-listen. Nestle Down and Germaphobe call back to their earlier days with catchy choruses and beachy guitar lines. Milk In The Sun blends the new, angst-driven direction Hockey Dad have taken this album on – see track Itch for the band at their darkest – with the warm, feel-good choruses we are used to hearing from the Windang duo.
With Brain Candy, Hockey Dad have added new emotional elements to their music without compromising their rock-orientated setup. Sadly, many of these festival-friendly songs won’t be truly appreciated for some time given the current state of affairs but, much like the delayed release of this album, the wait will certainly be worth it.
Watch ‘Itch’
‘BRAIN CANDY’ OUT FRIDAY JULY 31 – PRE ORDERS AVAILABLE HERE
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