Album Review: ..Another Set Of Circumstances

Shady Brain Farm hail from North-West Auckland — specifically Kumeu, Waimauku, and Muriwai Beach — and has been making music together since 1997. The band, Ben Furniss lead vocals, guitar, and keyboards, Paul Taylor drums and backing vocals, and Chris Vaughan on bass and backing vocals are certainly no strangers to musical diversity and are back with a new album, …Another Set of Circumstances

As their fourth full length album, it’s been a busy year with a tour and an EP release, and now, celebrating the new album’s launch.

The band says after wrapping up their 2024 March/April tour, they retreated to Lonely Hawk Studio, where they spent months fine-tuning and re-recording tracks to complete the album. It features four songs from their Astron EP, which came out in February 2024. One of the highlights is the track, Mary Spender which received a nod of approval from YouTuber Mary Spender herself, much to the band’s excitement.

With their diverse mix of surf rock, indie and pop rock tendencies, Shady Brain Farm has hit the nail on the head once again. Opening track, You… Tonight is an indie pop fever dream. Upbeat and catchy, it has plenty of melody.

Aforementioned Mary Spender is indeed a song to take pause on. The slow and delicate number is sweet and upbeat. Simple lyrically, the change in tempo has a Powderfinger kind of feel to it that rounds things off perfectly.

Further on, Crazy Situation has a great riff and melody, something that Brian Wilson would have loved to have come up with. Another catchy number that sounds timeless.

Last track, SloMoRoBo (a great play on words by the way) is another catchy riff. Imagine if Crowded House and Beach Boys jammed together and only added a handful of lyrics because they were too busy having fun.

A fun and delightful eleven tracks of great riffs, even better melody and some great lyricism once again from Shady Brain Farm. If you’re looking for a soundtrack for those upcoming warmer days, perhaps a beverage in hand, this is what you need. A no fuss but plenty of frills to feed you indie surf rock pop needs.