The Wind-up Birds are an energetic post-punk four-piece based in Leeds (UK), active for about twenty years, and probably that’s why they are so much better and smarter than most bands that want to piggyback on the recent revival of the genre. On their new EP Pop.Thinking, you’ll hear four pieces of evidence of this – idea-stuffed, haunting and urgent. Paul Ackroyd (vocals), Mat Forrest (guitar, back-up vocals), Ben Dawson (bass) and Oli Jefferson (drums) deliver convincing poetry reading, stirring tempo changes and gripping harmony choruses, pulsing rhythms and mean guitar riffs, and omnipresent swinging keyboard melodies. But who’s that mysterious band member touching the keys? That question is central to the video for opening track E-shaped Stories, which we proudly premiere here. It may be the best music video of the year, at least the one with the most suspense so far, with images that give the lyrics – picking on Netflix binge culture – a double meaning (“I hope by the end that you fill in all the blanks // I’ll be so happy but I won’t say thanks”). Even if you might not get a satisfactory answer, these four songs are very worthwhile.
The E-shaped Stories video is created by Hyve Music. The Pop.Thinking EP is out now digitally and on CD through Sturdy Records.
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Great tune… and, I’d say that even if my mate ‘wasn’t’ in the band. 🤓