Music and Recording Reviews

Deary: Birding
Bella Union Bella1700 (LP). 2026. Ben Easton, Dottie Cockram, Harry Catchpole, Iggy B, prods.; Ben Easton, eng.
Performance ****
Sonics ****

There's something very special about a debut album. Even if the musician's or band's vision isn't fully realized, it promises the excitement of something new and fresh. Hearing those first steps can be revelatory. Of course it can equally be the opposite: a huge letdown in money and time spent.

Thankfully Birding, from the London-based trio Deary, is of the former category. Theirs is a sound of shoegaze, of dreamy pop. Their influences are obvious: Slowdive or Portishead or especially The Cocteau Twins. Consisting of Ben Easton (multi-instrumentalist), Harry Catchpole (drums), and Dottie Cockram (vocals, guitar), Deary has produced music that soars and surrounds the listener with a remarkable orchestration of sounds, which the crystal-pure vocals of Cockram glide through like a seagull over open water (making the album's title especially apt).

The album's songs share elements as if this were an ephemeral pop movement, but there are differences of nuance: "Smile," the opening song, rises to a crescendo before slowly fading out. Sitting in the middle of the set is "Garden of Eden," a moving acoustic number. "Alma" could be described as a dance track—but only if you're dancing a slow shuffle. These songs and the rest share an immersive sound—production that fills the space around you. This matters more on this kind of music than it would with, say, three-chord thrash. I don't mean to imply that this is wallpaper music—music to play when otherwise engaged—because these songs are truly uplifting. Which may be why the album's first number is called what it is: It's an album that can bring a smile to the most worried of faces.

Birding makes a case that an interesting adventure lies ahead for this band: leaving their influences behind, growing, becoming an influence on others. Their next steps will be fun to hear.—Phil Brett

Bird Streets: The Escape Artist
Plastic Dreams Records (CD). 2025. Jason Falkner, prod., eng.
Performance ****
Sonics ****

Once you get past "Bedhead," the disjointed, maudlin opener, The Escape Artist reveals itself as richly layered and emotionally resonant. Bird Streets, the alter ego of singer-songwriter John Brodeur, leans farther into a sound that recalls Paul Westerberg: melodic, ragged, exposed. Brodeur's paranoia and sense of isolation take clearer shape here, anchored by guitar-driven arrangements that give his introspection structure and, along the way, lift.

Much of the material was written and assembled during the long COVID years, and the sense of suspended animation we all lived through lingers here. As lockdown restrictions eased in 2021, Brodeur reunited with longtime collaborator Jason Falkner to complete the recordings. Falkner balances polish with grit, allowing the songs to retain their intimacy while ensuring that their melodic impact is always sharp.

Bird Streets's self-titled debut leaned heavily into power pop and indie rock, while 2022's Lagoon wove lusher Baroque-pop textures. The Escape Artist finds middle ground, darker in tone but at its core a guitar-forward pop-rock record. "Fossil Eyes" lands squarely in the rock camp. "Run For Our Lives," with its handclaps and pristine harmonies, channels classic power pop.

"Pride Is a Gun" begins as a stark acoustic confession about self-destruction then tightens when drums and electrics surge in. "Wasted Years," built on ominous guitars and keys, feels like an anthem for collective burnout, while "Don't Be a Stranger" distills the album's loneliness into a spare acoustic meditation.

The 5:30 closer, "Sweet Amnesia," serves as an emotional summation. Starting with cymbals and drums, it builds toward a near–punk-rock crescendo. Though lyrically time-stamped by isolation and uncertainty, The Escape Artist transcends its moment.—Ray Chelstowski

Kula Shaker: Wormslayer
Strange F.O.L.K. Records STRANGCD8 (CD). 2026. Crispian Mills, prod.; Alonza Bevan, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics *****

Emerging in the mid-'90s alongside Oasis and Blur, Kula Shaker carved a distinct lane, fusing Britpop swagger with '60s psychedelia and a reverent embrace of Indian musical patterns. While they never scaled the commercial heights of those peers, Wormslayer suggests that might change.

True to its title, Wormslayer plants melodic ideas that burrow deep and linger for days. Listeners drawn to hook-heavy, widescreen sonic storytelling will find themselves rewarded.

"Lucky Number," the opener, bursts forth: Its driving rhythm and bright guitar figures set an urgent tone. The follow-up, "Good Money," broadens that, weaving R&B-inflected grooves and girl-group–style backing vocals into something that feels like a rediscovered '70s club anthem, polished yet dangerous.

The seven-minute title track forms the album's centerpiece. Expansive and unapologetically theatrical, it builds patiently before detonating into a soaring guitar riff that ranks among the band's most satisfying. Similarly, "Be Merciful" unfolds in deliberate stages, layering texture upon texture until it blooms into full psychedelic radiance. Across the record, dynamics are handled with care; quiet passages feel purposeful, crescendos are well-placed.

It is rare for every track on an album to pull equal weight, rarer still for them to unite so naturally in tone and theme. Wormslayer achieves that balance without sounding labored. Guitars are crisp without glare, bass lines articulate, and percussion snaps with satisfying impact. The mix leaves room for the band's layered arrangements to breathe. Its blend of swaggering rock, melodic pop craft, and subtle threads of Indian psychedelia feels organic rather than ornamental.

Wormslayer is neither nostalgic nor derivative. Instead it's delivered with conviction and flair.—Ray Chelstowski

Miles Kane: Sunlight in the Shadows
Easy Eye Sound EES-044 (CD). 2025. Dan Auerbach, prod.; M. Allen Parker, eng.
Performance ****
Sonics ****

Miles Kane's sharply tailored British cool and Dan Auerbach's gritty Midwestern blues aesthetic don't suggest an obvious creative overlap, but Sunlight in the Shadows reveals how much common ground they share, particularly in their mutual devotion to the raw electricity of '60s and '70s rock and soul.

The pair reportedly bonded over the music of Link Wray, American soul, and the swagger of British Invasion pop culture. That reverence runs throughout the album. Written and recorded in Nashville, the record features Auerbach as producer and on guitar.

Cut live in under a week, the album captures the sound of musicians locked in and enjoying themselves. There's a looseness that never slips into sloppiness. "Electric Flower" channels the glam stomp of T. Rex, while lead single "Love Is Cruel" pairs cinematic imagery—Kane evocatively describes it as "Clint Eastwood and Judy Garland in the desert at dusk"—with sunbaked riffs and a strutting backbeat.

Most tracks clock in under three minutes, underscoring the duo's intent to craft an old-school album. The economy works: Hooks arrive quickly, choruses land decisively, and there's little indulgent excess. Kane's fondness for covers surfaces in a spirited take on The Flamin' Groovies' proto-punk classic "Slow Death," delivered with grit and urgency.

The production favors warmth and immediacy. Guitars are layered but not congested, with pleasing midrange presence and a tactile crunch that rewards attentive listening.

With three albums in four years, Kane appears restless. From Motown-inflected grooves to back-to-basics rock'n'roll, he continues to widen his stylistic lens. Sunlight in the Shadows suggests that wherever he heads next, he'll arrive with both conviction and flair.—Ray Chelstowski