Review Summary: Birds of Tokyo sacrifice some of their punchy song writing in favour of more swagger and better melodies, creating the best album of their career.
Pop rock is a somewhat dying art in Australia, with Powderfinger recently calling it quits and other big names in Jet and Grinspoon becoming more and more irrelevant, there’s a gaping hole in the scene that is begging to be filled. Since their inception in 2004, Perth four piece Birds of Tokyo have risen as the best of the bunch in the new generation Australian rock bands, showing they have the potential to fill the aforementioned hole. Their self titled third album, while being somewhat of a departure from their more straightforward sound, sees Birds of Tokyo continue the amazing consistency of their two previous albums whilst displaying a marked improvement in song writing.
Opening up proceedings are the first two singles of the album, ‘Plans’ and ‘The Saddest Thing I Know.’ Both songs essentially show the two extremes of the album with ‘The Saddest Thing I Know’s’ more direct melodies harking back to the band’s earlier releases. Despite the quality of the band’s earlier releases, ‘The Saddest Thing I Know’ is actually the weakest track on the album, coming across as quite forced as if the band
had to write a track like that as a bridge between the two albums, when in fact it was completely unnecessary. It is actually a good song in its own right, but pales in comparison to the rest of the album. Second single ‘Plans’ on the other hand signals the band’s new, more melodic direction, whilst still providing enough hooks to keep older fans happy.
Some fans, however, are going to be unhappy about the direction Birds of Tokyo have taken on their third album; with the band forfeiting the punchy songs displayed Universes and Day One in favour of better melodies and a larger sound palate. Despite this, Birds of Tokyo still maintain their inherent catchiness, however this time in a more subdued fashion. While overall the band’s sound has mellowed out and matured on their latest release, it still boasts some of the band’s heaviest ever moments, with ‘Murmurs’ and ‘This Unspeakable Scene’ springing to mind.
On
Birds of Tokyo, there has also notably been a large increase in the use of strings and piano compared to previous releases, improving the band’s sound exponentially. This is most likely a direct result of experimenting with orchestral arrangements on the band’s Broken Strings tour. In fact, the better songs on the album are those that feature prominent amounts of strings. Take epic closer ‘If This Ship Sinks (I Give In)’ for example, its subtle string movements fitting seamlessly with the band’s more mature song writing, such that it is quite possibly the best song the band has ever written. This, along with tracks like the simply stunning ‘The Gap’ and ‘The Dark Side of Love,’ show exactly how the band’s use of extra instruments has benefited their sound, producing by far and away the best material of their career.
Even with all of the extra instrumentation and improved song writing, the biggest weapon in the Birds of Tokyo arsenal is still amazingly consistent vocalist Ian Kenny. His angelic, emotional vocals fit perfectly with the rest of the band’s music, particularly on the insanely catchy ‘The Dark Side of Love’ and emotional ballad ‘Circles.’ Despite Kenny and the rest of the band’s consistency, there is a filler track or two to be found on
Birds of Tokyo. As well as the aforementioned ‘Saddest Thing I Know,’ ‘Wild At Heart’ also comes across as unnecessary, as it is essentially a rehashing of ‘The Dark Side of Love’ and ‘In The Veins of Death Valley.’
Essentially, Birds of Tokyo’s self titled record is something that is bound to divide their fan base, with some welcoming the change in sound while others will mourn the loss of the band’s trademark
'There goes my baby....' type hooks. Whatever the outcome, Birds of Tokyo have vastly improved their sound via the expansion of their sound palate and Scott Horscroft’s slick production, giving rise to the best and most mature album of their career.
