Josh Birdsong - Where the Light Bends (2017)

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Written by Laura Dodero, posted by blog admin

Where the Light Bends, EP number two from Detroit-to-Nashville singer/multi-instrumentalist Josh Birdsong is a colorful display of interlocking and interwoven guitar melodies ala David Gilmour, pulsing electronica undercurrents and gripping, higher register vocals that avoid falsetto cheese for something earthier and more relatable…  All things considered it’s a very complete piece of work.  If it has any flaw it’s that only a few songs truly standout but strangely enough this is also one the recording’s strengths as well. 

This EP exercises its charm more and more with every subsequent listen.  If you’re looking for a release where you can simply skip around to your favorite tracks, you’ll find that Where the Light Bends doesn’t cater to finicky listeners.  Instead, Josh Birdsong treats the EP like one lengthy 6-part magnum opus with many soft change-ups in terms of dynamics and a thematic mood that is completely coherent if you play the songs in order.  Slight yet pleasingly melodic phrasing and structure adjustments become apparent once you get to know the songs.  For example, opener “Complex Contrast” unfolds new guitar licks (both backmasked and straightforward) each time you hear it.  The slow, deliberate first half is alive with guitars that constantly morph and shapeshift beneath a camouflage of synths and hymnal electronic drones.  Once the groovy percussion kicks in midway through, again the music becomes something else entirely.  At the center of this psychedelic tempest’s eye stands Birdsong’s unwavering voice; an expressive, emotional skyward timbre that crafts gargantuan hooks while never stepping on the music’s toes… and it’s without a doubt that the music itself is a larger focal point than the superb melody-intensive vocals.    

As “Complex Contrast” ends it spills over into the shoegazing, angularly bent guitar melodies of “The Sound Beneath the Static” which is like a crosspollination of My Bloody Valentine’s white-washed audio collages if filtered through the poppy indie rock of Sub Pop’s sadly forgotten maestros Pond and their tripped-out ballads.  “Cloud 8” is a tight mesh of push/pull guitars and keyboards that go from a pretty, sanguine mid-tempo to some late game bombast in the post-midsection where the riffs swell like tidal waves while still retaining their clean tones.  “Too Much to Hold,” while a nice song in its own right with a bluesy bent and more tangible rock n’ roll structuring, feels somewhat against the grain as it sticks out like a sore thumb when measured up against the rest of the album. 

Returning to the EP’s main progression, “Arctic Desert” is a sprawling, epic composition where western-tinged guitars collide into galactic, psychedelic melodies as Birdsong’s vocals reach for a bit gruffer registers.  It’s a powerful piece that should have been placed as the album’s finale instead of the stripped-down, cosmic pop of the title track which relies heavily on vocals and tangible guitar melodies.  Where the Light Bends is an stellar second outing from Josh Birdsong.  There aren’t any bad tracks and the EP could only be improved by tweaking the track listing.  “Arctic Desert” should certainly be at the end and you could move the title track to the position right after “Too Much to Hold.”  Still, minor nitpicks aside, this is easily one of the finest EP releases this year.