Album Review: Don’t Let Them See You Cry

I’ll admit, The Boondocks weren’t on my radar until recently. Granted, they haven’t been around that long. But not being a regular listener to rock radio, and obviously moving in different circles, I hadn’t heard their singles.

That said, hitting play on The Boondocks debut LP Don’t Let Them See You Cry, it’s clear that it has everything you could want from a straight-up modern rock album. Fuzzed-out riffs, thumping drums, and catchy hooks abound. It’s exactly the kind of tunes you can imagine hearing while walking past a building site, blaring out of a Makita portable radio. Considering they are a bass and drums two-piece, the sound is huge, yet well refined.

That’s not to say Don’t Let Them See You Cry is predictable or formulaic. The musical references are more Them Crooked Vultures and Wolfmother than AC/DC.

Mr. Feel Good, the album opener, sets the tone. The track roils through a clutch of hazy riffs (the listener will soon learn that this is one of The Boondocks signature moves), before a churning breakdown and a huge rock ‘n roll ending.

From there, The Boondocks rollick through a bunch of other bangers, including their singles Bombs, Bear With Me, Sticks and Stones, and their latest offering Hell Of A Time. They are great songs with plenty of fun elements. I particularly like the use of auxiliary percussion throughout the album to elevate the sound.

Something that also comes through clearly is the extraordinary chemistry between The Boondocks and producer Scott Seabright, who uses a plethora of production techniques to get the most out of the raw talent the band are bringing to the table. The team clearly hit it off, and I hope it’s a partnership they keep up moving forward.

The second to last track, Minnie Dean, is a welcome change of pace and a standout on the album. A tad slower, it’s a broody, almost Silverchair-esque, tune. Branden Pritchard’s drumming is a standout feature on this track, utilising plenty of cymbal licks and big, over the bar fills.

History buffs might know that Minnie Dean was the only woman executed in New Zealand. Dean, who was involved in ‘baby-farming’ (taking in unwanted children in exchange for payment), was hanged in 1895 after being found guilty of infanticide. Vocalist and bassist Scott Parker relayed that the track is “about child abuse…. manipulation, and abuse from parents”. The figure of Dean clearly stands in for an abusive parent or guardian, a figure all too common in Aotearoa’s history.

That’s not the only tough subject Parker takes on. Throughout the album, his lyrics often address the myriad contradictions and problems of modern society – the ways in which we compartmentalise our lives, the cliquey nature of small communities, the drive towards war and destruction, and the ways in which we hurt each other, intentionally or otherwise.

All up, Don’t Let Them See You Cry is a solid slab of Kiwi fuzz rock. My only fault is that it would have been nice to have at least another track like Minnie Dean to break up the flow as the album unfolds. Regardless, it’s clear The Boondocks are a band that’s going somewhere, and Don’t Let Them See You Cry will only be the beginning of their story.