Brooklyn Doran narrates ‘then’ versus ‘now’ on her new album ‘FIXER UPPER’

What once was a beat-up acoustic guitar purchased at a yard sale is now the vehicle for the more-than-a-decade-long career of Brooklyn Doran, a Canadian singer/songwriter and an accomplished saxophonist. Starting as a session player, singing at gigs across the country, today Doran coins the title of ‘the gay president of the sad song society.’ 

Similarly to Doran’s new album ‘FIXER UPPER,’ the project delves into the space between what once was and what is. Partially recorded before the pandemic, the collection of eight songs is Doran’s chronicle of the old versus the new. In saying that, ‘FIXER UPPER’ also represents her sonic evolution from a Canadian folk staple act into a more experimental alternative sound with less categorical limits but with the same pinch of wit and humor in her lyrics. 

The release of ‘FIXER UPPER’ kicks off Doran’s East Coast tour, where her fans will get to indulge in Doran’s new grunge alt-pop sound while singing along to the record’s standout hits like ‘Fuck THat Guy,’ ‘Relics’ and the latest single, ‘Wasted My Twenties,’ that offers an honest insight into turning 30 and consequent overthinking, reflecting and reminiscing. ‘Wasted My Twenties’ is a certified scream-your-heart-out earworm that might end up in elegantly controlled moshpits, watch out. 

Brooklyn Doran details the process behind ‘FIXER UPPER’: “We started recording this album before the pandemic and then the world shut down. Some of the singles were released in 2019 and 2020, whereas other tracks from this record like “Relics” and “Michigan State” were fully recorded before the pandemic, but we were able to be revisited and reshaped in the studio years later. It is a unique experience to be able to sit with these recordings for so long, and then to be able to go back and fix them up. I guess that is why Fixer Upper feels like the best title for this collection of songs. As I grew and found myself more as an artist, I was able to let this album grow with me. I guess you could say that I feel like a bit of a fixer upper myself. This record represents both who I was then, and who I am now.

‘FIXER UPPER’ launches into Brooklyn Doran’s new era and season of love and life. Listen to her new album, out now 

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Words: Karolina Kramplova