Little Birdy: A eulogy

The Band: Little Birdy

The Album: Big Big Love

POPULAR music today seems so cynically driven by the bottom line. Slick producers, big budgets and pretty people with limited talent abound. Record companies spend more time and effort on music videos than the so-called artist does on the song itself.

Nowadays we have ‘Groups” not Bands.

This coupled with the supplanting of live music with pokies and casino style entertainment has perhaps rendered the singer/song writer an endangered species.

That is why it is so refreshing when a new musical act comes along and bucks that trend. And its particularly wonderful when they are an Aussie act.

In a week or so, talented Perth rock quartet Little Birdy will arrive in Tassy for a two date leg of their current national tour. If you are young at heart enough to appreciate quality pop-rock played by a real band with real instruments and talent to burn you should get along to see Little Birdy.

Over the last two years this young band have emerged as one of Australia’s premier pop-rock acts. Arriving out of the most celebrated yet remote music scene in the country, Little Birdy (formed in 2002 and named themselves after US band Ween’s song of the same name), join a recent procession of successful WA acts abroad like The Waifs, The John Butler trio, The Sleepy Jackson (Katy Steele is the Sleepy Jackson’s lead singer — Luke Steele’s, younger sister), Jebediah, Eskimo Joe and End of Fashion.

The young band which is fronted by Katey Steele are signed to the Eleven label and have already gained ARIA nominations.

They also have a gold record for their first album Big Big Love (released in Oct.2004) which debuted at number five on the charts. Picked up and played heavily by ABC’s Triple J, Little Birdy impressed JJJ listeners enough to have two of their songs voted into the station’s prestigious annual Hottest 100.

Rolling Stone also picked Little Birdy as one of their “Top 10 Artists To Watch” in 2004. Famous U.K magazine “The Face” have rightly described Katy Steele as “a prodigy”.

Importantly Little Birdy have also garnered a reputation for its live performances, having impressed at gigs like Livid, Homebake and the Big Day Out. Little Birdy have a long list of support gigs including Alex Lloyd, The Cruel Sea and Paul Kelly, whose duet with with Katey Steele on SBS’s rockkwiz of the Thom Yorke/PJ Harvey song “This mess we’re in” was nothing short of sublime. Most recently Birdy supported rock-gods REM during the U.S band’s Australian tour. REM lead singer Michael Stipe has described Little Birdy as ‘world class’. The author was fortunate enough to see Little Birdy at REM’s Melbourne gig (national tennis centre) and whilst their set was short it impressed, particularly the vocals and stage presence of lead singer Steele.

Indeed, the first thing you notice about Little Birdy is the distinctive vocals of lead singer Katy Steele. Steele’s voice would have to be the most unique and melodious to be visited upon the Australian rock scene since George lead singer, Katie Noonan.

Guitarist Simon Leach reckoned he first heard Katy Steele’s distinctive vocals at a 21st birthday party.

“Katy was always there, she was around 15 when I saw her sing”. “Three years later, Katy and I were playing together”.

Steele has inevitably been compared to other female singers including Kate Bush and PJ Harvey, both of whom Steele has professed admiration for. Personally I can’t hear either of these influences. But if one must compare for the sake of comparing, then I would suggest some similiarities to the singer from Noosha Fox (listen to Steele groan the line “for you are my lover tonight” on “Come on you little heartbreaker”). Remember their 1970’s hit song s-s-s single bed! Some may also hear a little of Cardigans’ lead singer Nina Persson.

It has been said of Steele: “her voice is so sweet that you could stir it into your coffee if you ran out of sugar”.

The spunkiest

She has also been described as “the spunkiest little rock chick to strap on a Telecaster”.

For me its the palpable conviction in her singing, the range and texture and a genuine chanteuse type quality with a hint of Shirley Temple, and that dirty rock chick chic that is reminiscent of Chrissy Amphlett. Yep, this chick has got it goin on!

As the band’s main songwriter and vocalist on the “ Big Big Love” album, Steele has said: “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. ” 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.”

Indeed, Little Birdy’s strength, which Big Big Love amply demonstrates is its ability to write slow rhythmical hook filled pop songs with deliciously crafted melodies that even the masters of this style like Neil Finn and more recently Daniel Johns (of Siverchair and The Dissociatives) would be proud of.

The Big Big Love album contains many songs which are very easy on the ear, but there are also a few compositions which are damn-near pop masterpieces. These include the incredibly sincere and beautiful Message to God and the urgent Losing You. Go up a gear again and you get the haunting-pleading Close to You which begins with a long and rather gothic instumental intro and a bass-line which would have been at home in an episode of 80s’ cult TV show Twin Peaks.

Close to You segways beautifully via the little organ based ditty “It’s a rule for you” into the the album’s last and quite possibly best track, the award winning ‘Andy Warhol’. This track is a sad epic replete with a ridiculously simple guitar riff over which Steele’s voice soars. There is also the dark, and exquisitely beautiful rock-ballad Relapse which slowly builds as Steele begins to cry repeatedly “I can’t help this pain that I’m feelin”.

This radio hit helped put the the band on the map. Its reminds me of The Mavis’s at their best.

The Album kicks off with sexy grunge-groove-rock I’m Excited. Track 3 is the very recognizable radio hit “Beautiful to me” which is a georgeous and quite whimsical country rock styled ballad. It’s my Fault is another simple yet catchy pop offering which demonstrates steele’s vocal range. Tonight’s the Night is bonafide radio classic.

Big Big Love is a beautifully crafted pop-rock debut by a young and emerging band that have clearly got something very special going on. It’s as strong a debut album as I’ve heard in along time. Give it a good listen and see if it grows on you.

Rick Pilkington
Launceston

Little Birdy appear on Saturday 13 August at Wrest Point Casino, Hobart and Sunday 14 at The Saloon Bar, Launceston

Rick Pilkington has no vested interest in the aforementioned band or its products. He is just an old fart who loves good music.