Brown Bird " Salt for Salt " Album
»»———- ↻ ◁ II ▷ ↺ ———-««
Over a year ago my little sister introduced me to this musical duo and I am so glad she did. Brown Bird is probably one of the most authentic southern gothic bands I've heard in a good minute.
Their 2011 album " Salt for Salt " is in my opinion a proper introduction for new listeners as it includes some of their best work and full encapsulates the duos overall musical theme.
While I describe them as southern gothic and folk, the duo themselves detail how they've drawn inspiration from a variety of differing musical genres such as Romani music, Middle Eastern psych-rock, and Bluegrass. This mixture of influences resulted in Brown Bird having their own unique sound that cannot be properly labeled in one box.
Their sound is hypnotic, full of rhythmic beats and gentle guitar strings followed by their frequent use of a siren-esk overlapping of vocals. It's perfect to play in the background while you work or read, and the listening experience is heightened in the fall weather. The cold and slow decay of the nature outside your window seeming to pair flawlessly with the bands melancholic tone.
Lyrically, each song holds a different tale that's written hauntingly and often holds some sort of cautionary tale. Religious symbolism is used many times in their songs, usually as irony or criticism of the exploitive nature of Catholicism.
Vocally, David Lamb and MorganEve Swain go together like two halves of a whole, with Lamb's lower drawl acting as a counterweight to Swain's lulling voice. In fact, their voices are so hypnotizing that it's easy to miss the poetry of their words and overlook the songs theme. Or perhaps I'm just very susceptible to sirens.
Overall, Brown Bird is an amazing find and if you have a chance and want to listen to music outside your usual genre I highly recommend them! Listening to them may even draw you into the musical rabbit hole of dark folk and introduce you to more lesser known great artists.
Have fun listening!
- Rez Horse
