ALBUM REVIEW: Every House We Built – Exploring Birdsong
There’s not often a record that feels so elevating that you didn’t even know you needed to hear it, but are utterly changed by the experience. EXPLORING BIRDSONG have absolutely blown expectations out of the water with their debut record Every House We Built, taking their signature cinematic sound and focusing it into daring, brilliant narratives.
The master of harmony Lynsey Ward opens with her haunting vocals on Archipelago. The warmth and texture that the trio pull together across the padding synth and bright keys and the powerful drums is phenomenal. This album is going to be an emotional ride, already stunningly started and you’ll be hard pressed to not want to sit any play this song on repeat. However, it’s well worth the next instalments as 42 and Romanticise will have you beaming at their super catchy, glossy synthy beats. The insular paranoia of 42 pair with the heavenly beauty of the lust layering of melody and chunky rhythms.
It’s worth mentioning some really tasteful drum work from Matt Harrison in Romanticise, just spattering the track with little bits of character that all adds up to a full and rewarding experience. It’s crazy that a song that feels like IMOGEN HEAP made a jazzercise anthem (be assured this is meant an odd but very positive description) has such an audacious breakdown. It should be illegal to make something so tasty; this is it’s an undeniably superb song.
Likewise with Spy In The House Of Love, a bagpipey intro adds something of an unusual instrumental element that actually really works against the prog-pop lushness. There’s a lot of odd parallels in this record, but this one feels like PHIL COLLINS or KATE BUSH decided to make a bittersweet progressive rock classic. It’s absolute dance-like-no-one’s-watching, sing-your-heart-out goodness. Likewise, the sweet brightness of I_You’s instrumentation against the heartbreakingly honest lyrics is a recipe for musical magic as it glitters with nostalgia and earnest truth.
EXPLORING BIRDSONG have really crafted a emotional bastion with Every House We Built. Thus far, the rooms have mostly had a sense of brightness and joy, songs you can feel safe and comfortable in. Those that are bluer, colder have a bittersweet feel that nonetheless are sad but not threatening. But as you explore the details of Every House We Built you can notice the cracks in the plaster, the peeling of the wallpaper starts to show. Footprints and The Warning play with a sense of longing against two very different emotional backdrops. The former feels grief stricken but wistful and pondering, while in the latter a strange longing is pulled through the haunting, frail strings running up and down against the guttural punching rhythm section.
Arrhythmia, playing with the metaphor heartbeats and relationships, has a lot of standout work from Jonny Knight with the juxtaposition of the guttural and the sublime melodic work; it’s plush and soft, spikey and grungy all at the same time. These places are messy, complicated and hard to inhabit. They’re beautiful but lonely places.
Deep in the belly of the manor is You Like It Best When It Hurts, a song that feels like a place some real bad things have happened. It cuts like a knife through its aggressive beauty and its deliciously mean breakdown. Again, if you like the dramatic nostalgia of 80’s bands like DEPECHE MODE and modern progressive bands like VOLA, you’ll be all over this. Equally the tender hurt of Cartography lands just as hard, though with a much softer edge. The gentle strings, the rising vocals, the pulsing keys all tighten and loosen into this heart wrenching plea.
Title track Every House We Built feels like the pinnacle of the record, and it’s no surprise it’s the seed of inspiration for the rest of the record to bloom. Subtle tinkling of the melody underpinned with ever building percussion, it’s a lament for the loss of something that used to feel utterly solid. The push into the crescendo is utterly cathartic and the seamless cut to Meadowlands is genius. Such an uplifting ending, it’s a testament to how masterfully put together this record is.
Lynsey Ward, Jonny Knight and Matt Harrison are a team of unparalleled talent. There is so much care and heart in this record, it’s lush and complicated, while also being fun and a super easy listen. If you need a good time, a good cry, a good melody- whatever you need from your music, EXPLORING BIRDSONG have it in spades on Every House We Built.
Rating: 10/10
Every House We Built is set for release on June 26th via Long Branch Records.
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