Dead Broke Return with “Hypernormal,” a Sonic Take on Modern Chaos

Toronto rock band Dead Broke have returned with “Hypernormal,” a track that delivers a clear-eyed, blistering critique of modern life. Anchored by jagged guitars, volatile dynamics, and a desert-rock pulse, the song captures the disorientation of living in a world where everything feels reactive, monetized, and endlessly overwhelming. Listeners find themselves doomscrolling through microdoses of trauma, losing any sense of what is real.

“We’re living in a minute-by-minute basis of disruption,” says lead vocalist Michael Bright. “We swipe through nonsense online while real life atrocities are happening at home and abroad, and no one feels empowered to do anything about it. We are living in a state of the Hypernormal.”

A continuation of themes the band have explored over the past decade, “Hypernormal” sharpens Dead Broke’s lens on social division, disconnection, and the slow erosion of public good. “Things haven’t gotten better – they’ve gotten worse,” Bright adds.

The writing process for the song reflects a shift in the band’s creative approach. What began as a demo sketched by Michael Bright and Evan Saunders became the catalyst for a more collaborative era. “This song signaled the start of a new songwriting process and collaborative approach,” says guitarist Zack Carlan, who tracked his early ideas during the 2020 lockdown. “We started sharing our demo recording sessions, building off of them, and suddenly we had a whole batch of ripping new Dead Broke tracks.”

By 2025, Dead Broke had adopted a more tech-forward workflow, departing from what drummer Liam Farrell jokingly called their “1970s” method of writing together in a room. “By April, we had five or six new songs,” Bright says. “By July we were tracking in the studio. It was an encouraging change. There’s an urgency, and it’s exciting.”

Stylistically, the band pursued heavy, room-filling guitars while maintaining clarity and punch. “The dynamic shifts make this song unique,” Carlan explains. “The distorted, compressed, megaphone-esque sections split the airy, melodic verses from the heavy hitting choruses. The end feels like bashing your head against the wall, in the best way possible!”

Dead Broke is the graduated punk rock band for late nights, after-hours wanderings, and sunrise walk-homes. Currently composed of siblings Michael and Rachel Bright, guitarist Zack Carlan, and drummer Liam Farrell, the band blends punk urgency with desert-rock grit and feverish melodic edges.

They have proven that no stage is too small and no crowd too wild, whether tearing up festival stages like CMW, Pouzza, and NXNE, or playing squats, basements, and small towns across North America. While remaining true to their relentless DIY roots, they have shared stages with The Bronx, Black Lips, Single Mothers, and The Dirty Nil.

The band’s sophomore album, When The Night Comes In, involved an accomplished team of professionals: produced by Alex Bonenfant (July Talk, Broken Social Scene, METZ), engineered by Calvin Hartwick (OBGMs, Daniel Caesar, Wintersleep) and Nadia Dostovalova, mixed by Milan Sarkadi, and mastered by Reuben Cohen (Metallica, Pharrell Williams, Slumdog Millionaire, Bruno Mars). Recording took place at Toronto’s Dream House Studios, known for work with The Weeknd, Jessie Reyez, and Tokyo Police Club.

“Hypernormal” continues the talented stylings of Bonenfant and Sarkadi and features mastering by Andy Magoffin (Constantines, By Divine Right). With this track, Dead Broke open a new chapter, arriving sharper, louder, faster, and more self-aware than ever. They have built a sound that refuses to look away from the chaos of right now, giving listeners both a mirror to the modern moment and a pulse-pounding soundtrack to confront it.

For fans of gritty, intelligent rock with a punk edge, Dead Broke’s “Hypernormal” marks a high point in a decade-long exploration of society’s fractures. It is urgent, uncompromising, and unmistakably Dead Broke.