Let’s get it out of the way at the very start … Little Birdy got their name from a song by Ween OK?
Now that that’s behind us, let’s talk about their music. The band has described it as “melodic”, “emotional”, “sexy”, “textural” and “honest”. The press have described it as “innocent”, “quirky”, “gutsy”, “raw” and “moody”. Why not give it a listen and add your own adjective to this list?
The quartet is fronted by 20 year old singer/guitarist Katy Steele. Her vocal range, songwriting, and sartorial splendour have attracted comparisons to Kate Bush, PJ Harvey and Chrissie Hynde. Katy’s bandmates are Simon Leach on the big ol’ blues-tinged guitar, Scott O’Donoghue on bass and backing vocals, and Matt Chequer laying down a wall of drums.
The group formed in Perth during early 2002 – emerging from a vibrant local scene that had already delivered exciting new groups like The Sleepy Jackson & Eskimo Joe. In October that year they released their self-titled debut EP. The disc spent ten weeks at #1 on the indie charts and two tracks from it – “Relapse” and “Baby Blue” – were voted into Triple J’s Hottest 100 at year’s end. This unprecedented feat lead Rolling Stone to pick them as one of their “Top 10 Artists To Watch” in 2004.
Little Birdy played the Livid and Homebake festivals and headlined the Local Produce stage at Perth’s Big Day Out 2004. They’ve supported Placebo, Morcheeba, The Cruel Sea and Paul Kelly (who invited Katy to perform a duet with him).
In March this year, the band dropped the ‘This Is A Love Song EP’. It reached #22 on the national chart and became the most requested song on Triple J. The group sold out their own national tour and then travelled around Australia as special guests of The Dissociatives.
In between all of this gigging, Little Birdy set up camp in Sydney for about six weeks and created their forthcoming debut album “BigBigLove”. The disc was produced by Paul McKercher (You Am I, Eskimo Joe, Augie March,) at Big Jesus Burger Studios and mixed at Studios 301.
The album showcases the band’s sweeping musical range … from the irresistible melodies of the first single “Beautiful To Me” through the moody epic “Message To God”. Edgy live favourite “Excited” contrasts dramatically with the fragile beauty of “Close To You”. And there’s a powerful re-recording of “Relapse”.
On songs like “Tonight’s The Night” Katy Steele’s knack for penning Bacharach-esque hooks is undeniable … they sound classic but not retro.
“The main thing that I wanted to do with this record was to have as much classic, memorable melody as possible. The songs are all based on feelings and emotion, for each song had a particular vision. It covers all the colours we wanted to show with a first record. BigBigLove is built from that big hole I had inside”, said Katy Steele. “ It’s amazing how close this band has become and how fast we understand each other now. We have grown a million years in one year.”
“BigBigLove” was released in Australia on October 4 and made its debut at #5 on the ARIA chart. Little Birdy will hit the road for a national tour immediately following the release.
For a band that’s barely been together for 20 months it’s already been quite a ride for Little Birdy. Sydney’s Drum Media calls them ‘one little band about to fly’ while UK style bible “The Face” calls Katy Steele “a prodigy” and describes the band as “Lucinda Williams meets Kate Bush via Beck”.
But don’t take their word for it – check out Little Birdy for yourself.
Source: http://www.littlebirdy.net
