MUSIC REVIEW: Birds of Chicago

The trends of music find us in this weird middle ground between overexposure and dilution of great music and the rise of some premiere acts. Another trend, and this could do with over saturation or musical genre changes, is the slant towards synthetic sounds. Say yes for a synth! The whole album is recorded on a laptop! Yay for budget! You made that on your basement computer rig?! So sure, you can make a solid rock album, but without coating it in spades of electronics, you just have, well, you just have a rock album. And who wants that? The whole point of this will be immediately apparent. But one last point must be made- is there any more room for just wholesome down-to-earth instrumentation? Is it not possible for diverse technologically-forced experimentation to be damned, and the raw pop hook to float and soar to the ears? The answer is yes, and it comes in the form of the indie collective, Birds of Chicago.

There were a few things that immediately surfaced upon listening to the self-titled release by Birds of Chicago. One is sincerity. The other is the stripped raw nature of the music. Nothing is forced. Everything comes natural. It is as if Allison Russell and JT Nero banded together randomly upon meeting at the same spot in the studio, and began spontaneously jamming to the wonder of the random producer who was destined to just hit “record.”

Destiny or not, there was definitely something peculiar that brought together the two singer-songwriters. Though at first glance, the pairing is odd, but musically, nothing is as it seems. The vocal arrangements of Russell bounce eloquently off Nero’s guitar work.

‘Before She Goes’ is sensational, featuring the soaring vocals of Russell who shines and radiates with a pleasant vulnerability. ‘The Moonglow/The Tapeworm’ tackles a more traditional Americana feel, opting for the bouncy rhythms of the genre. ‘Sugar Dumplin’ is a speedy little number primarily sung from the male perspective, and it’s a quibbling love song for the country dancer in us all. And through the track Russell pops in and accents the song with her saccharine voice in all the right places. This is what we like to call, a “jam.”

The songwriting here is specific and nuanced, focused on what works and shedding off the bombast non-necessities of modern pop. This is perfectly restrained, yet whimsical folk-pop, with that additional flavor of the two key male-female vocalists, adding a fascinating take on the genre. Yet above all, standing strong and triumphant is tight songwriting, soaring ¬songs jangling along with clarinet, ukulele, and traditional acoustic. It is an entrancing mix, and through it all, the band sounds real, rich, and embracing.

The trends of music find us in this weird middle ground between overexposure and dilution of great music and the rise of some premiere acts. Another trend, and this could do with over saturation or musical genre changes, is the slant towards synthetic sounds. Say yes for a synth! The whole album is recorded on a laptop! Yay for budget! You made that on your basement computer rig?! So sure, you can make a solid rock album, but without coating it in spades of electronics, you just have, well, you just have a rock album. And who wants that? The whole point of this will be immediately apparent. But one last point must be made- is there any more room for just wholesome down-to-earth instrumentation? Is it not possible for diverse technologically-forced experimentation to be damned, and the raw pop hook to float and soar to the ears? The answer is yes, and it comes in the form of the indie collective, Birds of Chicago.

There were a few things that immediately surfaced upon listening to the self-titled release by Birds of Chicago. One is sincerity. The other is the stripped raw nature of the music. Nothing is forced. Everything comes natural. It is as if Allison Russell and JT Nero banded together randomly upon meeting at the same spot in the studio, and began spontaneously jamming to the wonder of the random producer who was destined to just hit “record.”

Destiny or not, there was definitely something peculiar that brought together the two singer-songwriters. Though at first glance, the pairing is odd, but musically, nothing is as it seems. The vocal arrangements of Russell bounce eloquently off Nero’s guitar work.

‘Before She Goes’ is sensational, featuring the soaring vocals of Russell who shines and radiates with a pleasant vulnerability. ‘The Moonglow/The Tapeworm’ tackles a more traditional Americana feel, opting for the bouncy rhythms of the genre. ‘Sugar Dumplin’ is a speedy little number primarily sung from the male perspective, and it’s a quibbling love song for the country dancer in us all. And through the track Russell pops in and accents the song with her saccharine voice in all the right places. This is what we like to call, a “jam.”

The songwriting here is specific and nuanced, focused on what works and shedding off the bombast non-necessities of modern pop. This is perfectly restrained, yet whimsical folk-pop, with that additional flavor of the two key male-female vocalists, adding a fascinating take on the genre. Yet above all, standing strong and triumphant is tight songwriting, soaring ¬songs jangling along with clarinet, ukulele, and traditional acoustic. It is an entrancing mix, and through it all, the band sounds real, rich, and embracing.

#Turntable