Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
By Wilding, Laughing Outlaw records 2011.
A few weeks ago I brought you Melbourne based Wilding’s latest release, The Death Of Foley’s Mall and I told you I would be exploring his back catalogue.
The Death Of Foley’s Mall was the first I’d heard of Wilding and it so impressed me that I have made him one of my featured artists of 2020.
Bird’s Bread, released in 2011, was recorded, produced, and mixed by Robin Waters in Brunswick and mastered by Matt Redlich at Massive Studios in Brisbane.
Waters’ influence on the album is substantial as he also contributes drums, bass, guitar, keyboards and a variety of other instruments, including backing vocals, to the finished product.
With Bird’s Bread we capture a younger Wilding who is developing his song writing craft but all the fun, wistfulness, nostalgia, and dreaminess that exists in The Death Of Foley’s Mall is still evident in this embryotic work.
In fact, it is probably amplified in it.
Justin Wilding Stokes’ bowerbird approach to song writing, and particularly song structure, is evident in tracks like Pale Blue Eyes with its Kinks like narrative and sound and Alopecia which has an XTC staccato jumpiness.
This bowerbird mentality extends to instrumentation tool as gadget instruments such as gazoos, jaw harps and whistles are prevalent.
I was particularly taken with the wonderful I’ll Love You Until Monday Morning which is one of the standout tracks on the album.
Musically it almost has a Beatlesque feel to it and the song forms part of a trilogy in the middle of the album that compliments each other particularly well, starting with the ‘60s psychedelic vibe ofThe Day I Let You Pass Me By through I’ll Love You Until Monday Morning and onto the previously mentioned Alopecia.
These are by no means the only good tracks on the disc,I’m Not Guilty Of Love sounds like a little bit of 10CC and Up On Lavender Hill even introduces a murder ballad worthy of Nick Cave.
I have a great love of music from the British invasion period of the ‘60s and ‘70s and Justin Wilding Stokes is steeped in it.
Next week I’ll take a look at his 2015 release Molecules To Moons.
