Dropper – Be A Little Kinder (Particle Recordings) (13th Floor Album Review)

Te Whanganui-a-Tara band Dropper release their debut album Be a Little Kinder. The Particle Recordings release sees the band show resilience through despair (and plenty of raw guitars and melody).

Not knowing a lot about the band (yet still putting my hand up to review this album) I put Be a Little Kinder on while walking home after a particularly long day at work.

The opening track (which also happens to be the lead single) Anchor has a little bit of everything you can expect on this album perfectly. There’s a little indie edge in the drums, a bunch of those post-hardcore guitar hammer-ons, some heavy power chords and relentless feedback breaks. I smiled to myself when I first turned it on, I was going to enjoy this album.

There’s plenty of punk sensibilities that lie at the soul of this album. Songwriter Jude Savage’s lyrical themes suggest hopelessness and miserable time. And rightly so, Dropper are formed from the band Bleeding Star. Their guitarist Otis Hill’s tragic demise would end the band and have a massive impact on the young singer. Which I think we can all empathise with, young people shouldn’t die.

But hope is another theme present on this album. Following the tragedy, guitarist River Hann-Ellen (Debt Club) joined Savage and ultimately began Dropper. And these guys have done quite a lot in a short time, supporting There’s a Tuesday, Wunderhorse and The Lemonheads.

Marketed as power-pop, there is a whole load of energy going on in this release. I imagine Dropper would put on an awesome live show. The guitars really sing in the heavy parts, but they’ve given us time to breathe with plenty of stops and quieter parts within the album.

The vocal melodies are certainly fit more into the alternative-rock bracket. While the hook is not always sticking out, it’s catchy. Your Face Says it All is a well written number that I’m not sure would necessarily have the crowd singing along if I cast it to the Bluetooth speaker at my aunty’s barbeque. But, I had it stuck in my head nonetheless.

The track Breathe Through The Wire has a very sweet story, Otis Hill’s mother sent the intro riff of the song onto Savage after Hill’s passing. The song is described as a ‘farewell to a friend’ and ‘a thank you to Otis’. And fitting that the song is about not being able to help someone. The song tugs on the heartstrings despite it’s heavy post-hardcore influence.

It’s not just the usual aggressive heavy power chords over pounding drums that you’d expect from a young alt-rock band. There’s plenty of variety in Be a Little Kinder, these kids know how to write decent music. It was exactly what I wanted to hear after a long day at work…

Daniel Edmonds

Be A Little Kinder is out now on Particle Recordings

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Enquiries to: helena@bigpopstudios.com

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Enquiries to: helena@bigpopstudios.com

Daniel Edmonds
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