Dez Dare turns difference into defiance on ‘We’re Not Broken Sunshine’
Written by Matilia Trammell
Single cover for "‘We’re Not Broken Sunshine’ by Dez Dare
Brighton-based Australian musician Dez Dare isn’t interested in sanding down the odd edges to fit comfortably within convention.
Released on 5th June, ‘We’re Not Broken Sunshine’ is the fourth track from his album These Days Are Wild & Blind and transforms those edges into the foundation of a near-five-minute garage rock and noise-punk rallying cry.
The track wraps its message in abrasion as opposed to sentimentality, and Dare’s verses arrive in dense, surreal flashes, where grey matter, bone, darkness and “technicoloured minds” collide. The kaleidoscopic imagery perfectly encapsulates how difference can appear contradictory to those who are observing it from the outside: shadowed yet vivid, difficult and brilliant all at once.
The chorus transforms the record’s defiant lyrics into something that feels like a repeated celebration of the wild and strange, and a declaration of identity rather than self-defence. The phrase heard within it, “strangest beasts” could have been an insult in another context, but here it becomes a badge worn proudly!
Meanwhile, the song’s verses are deliberately cryptic, and listeners searching for a direct narrative may find parts of them difficult to untangle. However, that ambiguity suits a song centred on minds that are too often expected to explain themselves in terms others find convenient.
Instead of spelling it out through its lyrics, the song communicates its purpose through the mood and contrast of the track, and its extended runtime works in its favour just as much as its slow-burning progression does. Instead of rushing towards a neat conclusion, the track keeps returning to its central affirmation until it feels powerful enough to drown out the judgement it confronts.
Its rough textures and chant-like structure also prevent the message from becoming a polished, cookie-cutter, empty empowerment slogan. Which feels especially fitting, as Dare has described ‘We’re Not Broken Sunshine’ as a response to people misunderstanding neurodiversity. The song’s refusal to simplify itself mirrors its defence of neurodivergent people who are too often expected to appear more conventional or easily understood, and yet its message still reaches beyond one experience, speaking to anyone who’s been treated as defective simply because they think, feel or move through the world differently.
But most importantly, the single doesn’t make difference sound fragile. It’s confrontational and stubbornly bright. And the word ‘sunshine’ adds tenderness without diluting the song’s defiance, turning the title into reassurance offered directly to someone who may need it.
Overall, ‘We’re Not Broken Sunshine’ is an unconventional but convincing statement of solidarity. Loud, distorted and unwilling to apologise, it argues that acceptance shouldn’t depend on somebody making themselves easier to understand.