Album #146: Little Birdy - Bigbiglove

Little Birdy

Bigbiglove (2004)

There must have been something in the porridge in the Steele household twenty or so years ago. Luke Steele has carved out a name for himself in the Australian music scene, firstly as leader of The Sleepy Jackson, but more recently as the creative force behind dreamy popsters Empire Of The Sun. His little sister Katy also made a name for herself as the lead singer and chief songwriter of Perth band Little Birdy, who arrived on the scene in a big way with 2004's Bigbiglove. 

The album not only did well on the charts, but it also sent two songs to the Hottest 100 for 2004 and attracted decent critical approval. It's also the only album the band released that has a real 'old-school' feel, where the overall sound is that of melody, harmony and pop-tinged indie rock. Later albums saw the band go a bit more electronic and experimental, and in my view their sound suffered as a result, making Bigbiglove their best album.

Why is that, and what do you need to know about it? Well, read on, and find out.....

The Album 

Little Birdy never hit any major heights, though they did okay, chart wise. It's a parallel for the experience of listening to Bigbiglove. At no stage is there anything that blows you away, nor is there anything amazingly outstanding, but it's all quite okay, listenable indie rock with pop influences. It would be fair to say that if it wasn't for Katy Steele, the album would not be as pleasant as it is, because her vocals are a real highlight, showing a great range as well as an impressive depth of emotion. Added to that is her gift for writing a good hook, as well as a decent lyrical ability, and she makes the album what it is.

Disappointingly, some songs are ruined by what I can only describe as a loudness issue. At times, the production is amateurish, with vocal hooks completely drowned out by overly loud guitars. You can get away with that if you're a metal band, or guitars are a vital part of your sound, or if you don't really rely on hooks in your music. Unfortunately, Little Birdy do rely on hooks, and they're not a metal band, so where the music needs room to breathe, and the vocals need to be heard, this doesn't always happen. This means that songs like Come On Little Heartbreaker, Tonight's The Night and Losing You end up far harsher on the ears than was probably the band's intention.

Where the melodies and hooks are given room to come through, the songs show a good level of songcrafting. On opener Excited (the one song where you could forgive the producer for turning up the guitars) there's snarl and bite in the riffs, and a ballsy rocker is offset by Steele's high pitched birdsong. Beautiful To Me is a lovely pop track, helped by a softer production touch. All the instruments blend together gently, while Steele sails over the top with a great vocal...and there's even a nice slide guitar motif. The underrated Forever does have some incredibly annoying synth strings (though they are bright and breezy, as is Steele) but when they give way, the song proper is a good indie pop track that manages to steer clear of most pop cliches (especially with the inclusion of a slide guitar solo and a rather scratchy, staccato guitar riff in the second verse). Closing track Andy Warhol is also interesting, serving as the most 'underground indie rock' tune of the album, with its guitars calling to mind the 90s indie sound.

Counteracting that are a few tracks that struggle to justify their inclusion on the album. Close To You is moody, bleak navel gazing that refuses to engage on any real level, plodding along to an inevitable conclusion; It's A Rule For You All is painful crap, a piano waltz with a fucking calliope (A CALLIOPE) blaring away like it's Sunday night at the circus; and It's All My Fault tries to tackle pop balladry but comes off as an incredibly poor recreation of Jealous Guy, with none of the feeling and even less of the skill.

The Verdict

Bigbiglove is a middle of the road album from a middle of the road band. As a vehicle for the talents of Katy Steele, it does a decent job - she is, as I said earlier, the album's standout - but as an overall listen, it scarcely breaks though the barrier of mediocre. There are moments of fleeting promise, while others are sadly ruined by poor production.

My rating: 5.7/10

Standout Tracks

Beautiful To Me

Forever

Excited