Violent Things
| Violent Things | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 18, 2009 | |||
| Recorded | 2009 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 49:57 | |||
| Label | None, You Jerk | |||
| Producer | ||||
| The Brobecks chronology | ||||
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Violent Things is the fourth studio album by American indie pop band the Brobecks. Written by lead vocalist and bassist Dallon Weekes, with production by Casey Crescenzo, it was independently released on May 18, 2009.
Background
[edit]In contrast to the Brobecks' previous three albums, Dallon Weekes is the sole writer of Violent Things.[1] Weekes recorded the album's 15 songs over a week-and-a-half period with producer Casey Crescenzo in his home basement studio in Boston, Massachusetts. It was published without mixing or mastering due to budget constraints, leading to a retroactive dissatisfaction with the album.[2]
Reception
[edit]Although the album had little success upon release, it became a trend on TikTok in the early 2020s.[3] The song "Better Than Me" received particular attention for its self-deprecating content,[4][5] amassing over 85 million streams on Spotify.[6] Claire Cicero of The Red & Black praised the distorted bass, harmonies, and lyricism of "All of the Drugs", complimenting its momentum from a minimalistic start.[7] Davy Washington of The Bullet highlighted the track "Boring" as an anthemic encapsulation of the album's sorrow, building from soft piano and vocals into an electronic instrumental burst.[8]
Re-recordings
[edit]In 2011, "Visitation of the Ghost" was re-recorded for a planned Brobecks EP, but this was scrapped after Weekes joined Panic! at the Disco as a bassist. It was later released as a single.[9] Re-recorded editions of "Love at First Sight" and "Second Boys Will Be First Choice" were leaked on multiple occasions under an EP titled This Is Heavy along with a demo for "Far Too Young To Die," used later on the Panic! at the Disco album Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die! (which was leaked on SoundCloud prior). Weekes has stated that these were released without his consent, by a third-party, to make money off of his old songs and demos, and requested they not be streamed online.[citation needed]
After the formation of I Dont Know How But They Found Me between Weekes and Ryan Seaman, the duo initially had a short catalog of music. They chose to perform cover songs to lengthen concerts, including songs originally by the Brobecks.[10] Three of these are from Violent Things: "Visitation of the Ghost",[11] "Boring",[12] and "Clusterhug". The latter was proposed as a demo to Panic! at the Disco, but the band declined. It would eventually appear re-recorded on I Dont Know How But They Found Me's debut album, Razzmatazz (2020).[13]
Track listing
[edit]
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Personnel
[edit]Credits adapted from the album's Bandcamp page.[14]
- Dallon Weekes – lead vocals, bass, guitar, keyboards
- Drew Davidson – drums
- Casey Crescenzo – production, guitar, piano
- Lyndsey Lesh – album artwork
- Bill Ferenc – typography
References
[edit]- ^ Becker, Sarah (June 16, 2024). "Hacked Dallon Weekes account slanders Taylor Swift and others". AudioPhix. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Riddell, Rose (August 21, 2017). "Interview: I Don't Know How But They Found Me's Dallon Weekes on his upcoming album". Coup De Main Magazine. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Shutler, Ali (February 28, 2024). "iDKHOW: "You think I'm going to do one thing, so I'm going to do something else"". Dork. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Uribe, Yonni (June 28, 2024). "Local Review: The Brobecks – Understanding The Brobecks". SLUG Magazine. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Schaumburg, Sage (December 11, 2017). "Album Review: "Violent Things" by the Brobecks". The Vision. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ "Violent Things - Album by The Brobecks". Spotify. April 25, 2009. Retrieved April 23, 2025.
- ^ Cicero, Claire (February 21, 2018). "Short and sweet: A playlist of songs under two minutes long". The Red & Black. Retrieved April 23, 2025.
- ^ Washington, Davy (September 29, 2022). "Weekly Picks: New song releases students need to hear". The Bullet.
- ^ "Visitation of the Ghost (2011 Fancy Studio Version) Anniversary Bonus*, by Dallon Weekes". Bandcamp. Archived from the original on May 23, 2016. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
- ^ Carter, Lucy (February 16, 2024). "Album Review: GLOOM DIVISION // iDKHOW". The Indiependent. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
- ^ Venus, George (July 8, 2024). "Live Review: IDKHOW - SWG3, Glasgow 30/06/2024". When The Horn Blows. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Walker, Shiona (July 8, 2024). "PHOTO GALLERY: iDKHOW, Balancing Act, SWG3, Glasgow, 30/06/2024". Bring the Noise UK. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ Mosk, Mitch (November 17, 2020). "'Razzmatazz' & Razzle-Dazzle: iDKHOW Go Track-by-Track Through Thrilling Debut Album". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
- ^ "Violent Things, by The Brobecks". Bandcamp. September 9, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
