Nothing But Thieves

I know that over time I’ve mentioned how much I celebrate music in my house and with my family, but I’ll be totally honest when I say that I don’t think any other band has captured both mine and my wife’s attention as much as Nothing But Thieves. Why? I don’t fucken know…maybe because they’re friggen awesome!

Ok, I know the phrase ‘awesome’ is always relative to the listener, but I think thats what I’m trying to get at. Every partnership can vary from “We never listen to the same music” to “We only ever listen to the same stuff”…and everything in between. For my wife, Rachel, and myself, we probably sit at about 70% the same. This has a lot to do with the fact that we’ve been together over 20 years along side the reality that I actively search out new music all the time and so this is often what she has been exposed to.

But unlike any other time in our history, around 2017, we came across this group of five boys from Essex, England who had just released their second album and for one of any unknown etherial reasons, it took our household by storm. It’s no secret that we are both more Heavy Rock leaning than most other genres. The scale is forever sliding. But when you start to burrow down the rabbit hole of perhaps why we like the music we do, Nothing But Thieves ticks a hell of a lot of boxes for us.

I will also say that timing has everything to do with music tastes. We’d been through quite a full on year at this stage and I think that the temperature of their music combined with what we needed at the time culminated in a kind of perfect musical storm. Don’t get me wrong here…I’m not saying they are the perfect band. But if you were to ask both Rach & myself together who we would love to see live more than any other band…these guys would be it. At least for now.

So let’s do a little drill down shall we.

If you’ve never heard Nothing But Thieves (NBT), you can scroll down a bit to hear snippets of what they sound like, but I’ll put money on the fact that if you’re here reading this now, you understand the concept of how great music reveals more layers the more you listen to it. For me, NBT’s music keeps on giving. I’m not going to talk about their style so much because it’s either your cup of tea or its not, but over the years I’ve learned to appreciate artists who can vary their style of music from out & out heavy rock to beautifully crafted ballads…and the ability to meld the two.

At first listen I can understand how they can come across as a bit Pop at times, which to be honest I don’t have any issues with. Now that I’ve listened to the shit out of their music over the past few years, the layers that their music serve up have become so familiar to me that they have become one of those bands I can put on pretty much anytime and it’s like wearing an old glove.

Let’s first take a look at the way they construct their music…

This is where the Pop aspect comes in. Call it Pop, catchy, digestible…whatever. Like any artist you really love, if you listen to their album/music often enough, you begin to learn it. Sometimes we learn them so well that you can look forward to a riff thats coming in 12 beats, a jump into the chorus or an intro that shifts your state of mind every time you hear it. After listening to these dudes so often, I feel as though I know their three studio albums (yes, one only came out 2 weeks ago) and an EP so well that my appreciation for how they craft their music is pretty complete.

As far as Hard Rock is concerned, its debatable. Ask a Slayer fan and they’d chuckle under their breath and nod at you with this “Sure…if you think thats Hard Rock, then good for you”. *sarcastic wink* kind of approach. Ask a Thyco fan and they’d probably consider it a little too…mainstream. But for me, they are my go to band every time I want some motivation to get the creative juices flowing.

Conner Mason.  

But the real reason I love these guys so much is a simple one. Lead singer Conner Mason’s voice.

Un. Fucking. Believable.

I’m deadly serious here. He is one of the most quirky front men I have ever seen, and I’ve seen Bez dance at a Happy Monday’s gig. Like all great front men & women, the voice has to be the draw card and Mason’s voice is a card that pretty much trumps everyone else. NBT’s would not be the band they are without the tone and range that he brings. His ability to go from one end of the scale to the other in the same song with the same level of control in his voice is remarkable. But without trying to hang shit on him, to look at him, he’s the most unassuming lead singer I know…which is just another reason I love them so much.

He’s got a really quirky way of singing which only adds to their/his attraction for me. Have a look at the video I’ve posted at the end of this review and you can see how he kind of twists and turns when he sings. If its legit and not showmanship, I’ve always seen singers like this to be immersed inside their own voice and the music its producing. I get the feeling that this state of being is Conner Masons default.

So, 2017 swings around and their second studio album ‘Broken Machine’ dishes up the track ‘Amsterdam’, and after a handful of listens…I’m hooked. So naturally, I begin listening to the album and for the next six months, its pretty much my favourite album. I bought a copy in vinyl and if you listen to it through your headphones at a very loud volume, it is the most wonderful musical journey I have taken for some time.

Over the years, there are probably a dozen albums I have fallen head over heels with that I’ll play over and over again and never get sick of them. ‘Broken Machine’ sits squarely in this category. Every track on it is so familiar to me that now they all seem to bleed into a familiar story that I never get tired of hearing.

So, after not much listening, I found my favourites within ‘Broken Machine’. If I say all of them…is that cheating?

The album kicks off fairly big with ‘I Was Just a Kid’ which like any great album, instantly transports you into their world. Big sound. Multilayered. Melodic as fuck. The kind of track you kick your concert off to. I’ve touched on ‘Amsterdam’ already. Probs the most well known track they have. But there are a few stand outs that I’ll point you in the direction of.

‘Soda’ is another track you may [or may not] be aware of, but its not the big rock track. Its more like a warped ballad that speaks more to their ‘Alt’ label with themes of discontent, self aware seclusion and rationalising hopelessness. Or at least thats what I get from it. Once you hear it often enough though, it sticks in your head and you may find yourself waking up with the chorus running through your brain. (I’m sure I’m not the only one who does this right…right?)

‘I’m Not Made by Design’ is the other big track on this album. Some could call it an atheist anthem. Clearly not a religious band, themes questioning the idea of idolising gods give the song and the band new dimensions in what they choose for the subjects of their music. Between their second and more recently released third albums, they released an EP with four tracks which I devoured and as quickly added to all the appropriate playlists I have. But there is a track called ‘Gods’ that have been interpreted to be about all sorts of things, but as soon as I heard it found myself making connections with the idea that we make gods from people with power, fame and money.

Apart from anything else, I think a large part of why I resonate with certain bands or artists is because of not only how they make music, but what they make their music about. And over time I have come to love how NBT’s frame their themes. They still rely on a sense of poetry that shapes their themes eloquently but not obviously. And that my friend is art.

‘Particles’ is when you begin softening into more of a ballad. And, like most great ballads, they are often tinged with stories of love and separation. Loss & hurt. Hope & resurrection. And this track is right in the slot. Add to this ‘Afterlife’, and you begin to get the whole life beyond and the romance that can often accompany it.

To be honest, there are more songs on this album that I could write about for days, but no one wants that. The album really does speak for itself. But as I mentioned before, between ‘Broken Machine’ and the newly released ‘Moral Panic’, they released the EP ‘What Did You Think When You Made Me This Way?’ Four tracks that are just as good as any track on any album they have. I’ll admit I was a little disappointed that they didn’t dish up an entire album, but I spose now that ‘Moral Panic’ has been released, I’m a happy boy.

Without being over dramatic, after listening to their new offering for two weeks now, I am officially of the opinion that they just make great music. Whether they are covering others music (see below) or spinning music of their own making, they make music that I just seem to resonate with. I am also of the opinion that Rach & I are not the only ones who feel this way. They feel as though they’re on the verge of becoming one of those big stadium bands…like where Coldplay were with ‘Rush of Blood to the Head’, where Foo Fighters were with ‘Nothing Left to Lose’ or QOTSA’s ‘Songs for the Deaf’.

I’m really hoping they keep on keeping on because they seem to be going from strength to strength. Plus, from watching some interviews with them, they look like legit lovely dudes. Thinking dudes with something to say who just happen to make kick arse music. Best combination ever.

So without going into the new tracks from ‘Moral Panic’ (I’m still getting used to them but they are quickly making their way up the list of best NBT tracks), I will say that over time there are some things that I have learned to love more than most other things. For some its drinking cocktails on a boat off the coast of Greece. For others it could be a new pair of kicks or the feeling of driving 100kph on a Harley through the back roads of a Tasmanian country town.

For me, its finding a new album that I automatically want to play again once it finishes. I did this four times with ‘Moral Panic’ and it made me happier than I can imagine.

So, as we come to the end of a year that has thrown up more than its fair share of bullshit and challenges, I am giving more and more credence to the idea of things that make me feel complete. And (most) music does that. Writing about it seems to solidify it somehow. Like the idea of telling someone how I feel when I hear it can be just as cathartic as the listening to it.

I know in my heart that Nothing But Thieves aren’t for everyone. But by that rationale, they are for some. If by writing about them then sparks the flame for someone else to fall in love with them, well…I don’t think there would be anything that would make me happier. And worst case scenario, people feel the passion and love I have for not only these guys but music as a whole.

We can politicise pretty much anything if we let it. The music industry is a perfect example. But really, when it gets down to brass tacks. Good music is good music no matter where it comes from, and these Essex boys make good music.

No….fucking great music.

M /

Nothing But Thieves performing a cover of Gang of Youths’ ‘What Can I Do If The Fire Goes Out?’ for Triple J’s Like a Version in 2018.

* Note: I am fully aware that the video above is not an original, but when a band does a cover that is better than the original (sorry Gang of Youth fans), then I think its worth pointing out that its probs got more to do with the band than the song. 

* Also note: Gang of Youths are fucking awesome as well and should not be discounted here.