Birdnoise by Sucks to Be You, Nigel

The dark, angular, abrasive bones of post rock have once again surfaced after decades of being subdued by indie crescendocore, greeting our doomed moment in history with its off-putting embrace. Fitting in with this trend towards a once-forgotten post rock tradition, Birdnoise by Sucks to Be You, Nigel just became the most recent in a string of fantastic albums to show us how much room we still have to explore this sound. For a brief few moments here and there, this record feels flippantly unserious, giving us a mentally unwell version of fun, jumpy garage rock. However, at other points these jarringly passionate vocals take over, trying to outdo the end of “Good Morning, Captain” with each and every verse. An absolute whirlwind alternative rock album styled like a desperate final journal entry, Birdnoise blesses us with the rare pure synergy between musical style and emotional content. No other record could’ve gotten this band’s thoughts and dispositions onto tape like this one could, and in a sense there’s no higher aim to art than that.