On their debut album, Melbourne garage punk outfit, Delivery, sounds like a band that has been playing together for years. In reality, the band didn’t start playing together until 2020. In this short span of time, the unit has been able to assert their prowess as a group with their catchy brand of dusty garage punk. Every member of Delivery is a utility player on this record, you’ll hear the voices of all five band members prominently on this album, three of the five are featured playing guitar, and two of the members are credited sprinkling their fingers on the synths. This sheer variety and unpredictableness could be the downfall of a record, but Delivery use their diversity to their advantage throughout Forever Giving Handshakes.
Various moments on this record are designed to keep the listener guessing what lies around the corner for them to discover, with a prime example being the third track on the album, ‘Baader Meinhof.’ The song that borrows the name of the illusion that occurs when someone notices something for the first time, and slowly starts to notice it more and more in their lives, starts off with the goofiest synth line that I’ve heard in a while before guitars start to chug and propel the listener to bounce their head to the infectious groove. After that, the synth line paired with jangling guitars somehow create this high energy experience, carrying the track to the forefront of a listener's mind. ‘Poor-To-Middling Moneymaking’ sounds like a straightforward track at first with its bouncy yet infectious beginning guitar riff, but after a mid-song guitar break there are a lot of switch ups within vocalists that feel fresh and interesting. My favorite moment, while tiny, makes a big impact with one of the vocalists saying the word ‘sterilized,’ but the band chooses to chop this vocal up, creating this weird glitchy lyric that really plays a big part to the enjoyment of this song. Deeper along the album, the band gets a little funky early on in the track ‘No Balconies,’ before a talk-singing verse by one of the vocalists in the band. The chorus is set up in a call and response manner, with the band calling out ‘Dream House,’ while the same vocalist shouts ‘No Balconies,’ creating a very effective image in the listeners mind.
The band seems to touch capitalism with a critical, yet lighthearted tone on this album. Whether this be an accident or on purpose is up to the interpretation of the listener. Whichever way you look at it, the band does it in an effective way. ‘Poor-To-Middling Moneymaking’ seems to be a track about balancing a passion with an everyday job, and the internal struggles this dilemma causes someone. ‘No Homes’ seems like a playful look on the cost of living, but the more you listen to it, it starts to feel a little bit like a critique on the rising prices of homes. Songs like ‘Born Second’ and ‘Wear It Well’ also come off as feeling very critical to the corporate life, with their takes on imposter syndrome and not quite knowing what your role in a job or society should be worth on a monetary scale. ‘Born Second’ comes off as a song about comparing yourself to others and playing second fiddle in a lot of ways, constantly overlooked and misunderstood. On the other hand, ‘Wear It Well’ sounds like a song about being new at a job and not knowing the ins and outs of your role or what you’re really supposed to be doing. Forever Giving Handshakes sees Delivery flexing their songwriting skills, coming up with unique song topics that feel serious, but the band flips these topics on their heads, making an experience that feels fun, yet full of attitude at the same time.
Favorite tracks: Baader Meinhof, Poor-To-Middling Moneymaking, No Balconies
Least Favorite Track: The Complex
Rating 7.5/10
Listen to Baader Meinhof below, off of Delivery’s debut album Forever Giving Handshakes:
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