British four-piece Don Broco, lead by the charismatic frontman Rob Damiani, have been taking the British rock scene by storm in recent years, especially after the release of their third studio album Technology that dropped in 2018. Yet I would like to take you back to 2012 where the Bedford lads released their first-ever album, Priorities. Peaking at 25 on the UK album charts and providing singles like ‘Priorities’, ‘Hold On’ and ‘Whole Truth’, this record is heavily underrated in the band’s discography and just isn’t appreciated enough even by the group’s own fan base.
Full of exciting riffs and fun lyrics, Priorities is one of those albums that still sounds so great every time you return to it, and it never seems to get old. Singles like ‘Priorities’ and ‘Actors’ are so energetic and feature Si Delaney’s crunching guitars and Matt Donnelly’s crashing drums that helped to inject new life into a music genre that was slightly lacklustre during the back end of the 2000s. The title track is certainly one of the best songs in the band’s entire discography and features the iconic line “Miss you pumpkin, I miss you babe” as well as providing the Broco ‘walk’ during their live performances. ‘Actors’ is by far the most aggressive and heaviest song on the record and shows that the band can cater to both fans of a tamer rock sound as well as fans of the heavier rock genre – and the Bedford band sound great doing both.
Tracks like ‘Yeah Man’ and ‘Let’s Go Back To School’ are fantastic deep cuts that show off the different vocal ranges and styles that lead vocalist Rob Damiani has in his locker, as well as giving some spotlight to the higher range of drummer Matt Donnelly who harmonizes with Rob perfectly and gives each song an extra bit of flavour. ‘Yeah Man’ has a slight acoustic vibe to it, and the catchy chorus is one that gets the crowd belting out the phrase “yeah man” whenever it is performed live. ‘Let’s Go Back To School’, a song about reminiscing about university life, is truly underrated and is the perfect pop-rock tune that can appeal to all kinds of music lovers.
This was also the album that properly kick-started the band’s career in the music industry and led to them touring with bigger acts such as You Me At Six, as well as being a part of the Rock Sound Riot Tour 2012. If you do ever get the chance to see these guys live, the singles they play from this album (which I think is now only ‘Priorities’ sadly) are some of the most exciting parts of their set and the packed out audience go absolutely crazy.
Priorities is a fantastic album and definitely one you should check out if you haven’t already – for me it is the band’s best work and from front to back is full of super lively, exciting songs. If you are a fan of rock acts like You Me At Six, Twin Atlantic and some of Enter Shikari’s work then this record will certainly be right up your alley.
Priorities is available to listen to now via Sony Music. Check out it’s title track down below.
