ON THURSDAY night, head to Reading’s Purple Turtle and you can enjoy a gig from a band that fuses half-time gutter groove rock ‘n’ roll and ethereal flights of cerebral sonic exploration.
No, us neither.
But Broken Hands aim to elicit physical and psychological reactions from their audiences.
The Canterbury-based band have been developing a reputation for raucous live shows, performing alongside the likes of The Kills, Catfish and the Bottlemen, The Cult and Deaf Havana in addition to gracing the stage of the world-famous Reading & Leeds festivals.
And if that wasn’t enough, they’ve signed a deal with Atlantic Records.
Just before their started recording lead vocalist Dale Norton endured the sort of nightmare most musicians don’t dare dream about: intensive ear surgery that left him unable to sing or play music for nearly two months.
“I had to have this dissection to basically open up the pathways,” he explains. “I couldn’t do anything after for what felt like forever. I’m probably hearing music completely different from how I did. The upside was I came into this record with a fresh palette.”
The end result was, hopefully worth it.
“For a British rock guitar band, it’s all about fast, four-to-the-floor singles,” says Dale. “We went slower and heavier. We loved doing the slow vibe. It was a big lightbulb moment.”
And their sound today? Broken Hands aim to translate duality into definitive anthems.
“It’s okay to be divided,” Dale says. “You don’t have to feel like you’ve got to be one thing all of the time physically, psychologically, or musically. Too often in life, people try to tell you to be one thing. We reached a new level by clinging to both sides.”
And you can find out for yourself when the band appear at The Purple Turtle in Gun Street, Reading on Thursday, April 18.
