New Zealand pop duo Broods are back with a brand-new album, Don't Feed The Pop Monster, released on February 1. Following their 2016 album, Conscious, the brother-sister duo were dropped by their record label. Now signed with Neon Gold, they are a little bit older and have a stronger sense of their own artistic direction. It’s this narrative of growing older and enduring life’s highs and lows that have manifested on their new album.

“It’s older, like we are. We’re 26 and 24 and in your 20s there’s just so much to learn and every year you feel like a different person,” said vocalist Georgia Nott.

In the years since Conscious, the duo moved to Los Angeles and completely reshaped their lives. Nott believes it wasn’t just getting dropped by their label, but dealing with life in general that influenced their music. In dealing with the confusion of her professional and personal life in this period, she learnt to accept a lack of control. Tackling their own personal ideas of confusion and existential wonder, the duo has written from a deeper place, in contrast to their earlier releases, which Nott described as “surface level shit”. While the same bright, happy and fun pop sound of BROODS has remained, the lyrics have become significantly more melancholic. Nott hopes that this will make the music last longer and continue to resonate for years to come, not just in fans’ minds but in their own.

“I feel like the album is a bunch of anthems for people that are confused and people that are trying to survive the retrograde,” she said.

The strongest example of this is their hit single ‘Peach’. The lightness of their dance-ready pop sound is balanced with a bittersweet acceptance of life’s inconsistencies, seen in lines like “I'm high and I'm low, no control, but everything's looking peach now.” ‘Peach’ is one of many off the new album to be accompanied by an over the top, quirky film clip. Nott believes the playfully psychedelic visuals are a sign of the new direction the band has taken with their more personal song writing.

“We wanted to just have fun and be a little sillier and show our sense of humour through our music videos. When we first released the ‘Peach’ video, so many fans said this is so much more you,” she explained.

After “playing it safe” on their last album, as Nott described, and still being dropped by their label, the duo had many questions about their place in the industry and how they would fit in. Accepting the things that don’t let them fit in, they have embraced their quirks, shortcomings and uncertainties to create a more accurate representation of Broods for fans.

“Playing it safe doesn’t always work out, that was a big wake up call. We did what we were told and we still weren’t successful, so we might as well do what we want and express ourselves authentically. If we fail, it’s nobody’s fault but our own.”

The aesthetic of their videos is expected to translate into their Don't Feed The Pop Monster Australian 2019 Tour. Working with visual directors and lighting teams, Nott believes the show will be an experience, not just a band playing their songs.

“It’s kind of like making a video. You get to create a little world that people get to go into, but instead of being three minutes it’s an hour and a half.”

Don’t Feed The Pop Monster is available now in retail stores and all online distribution platforms. The five-date theatre tour starts May 21 at Melbourne's Forum before taking on Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle.

Tickets for all shows go on sale at 9am Monday, February 4.