NO BIRD SING signs to Strange Famous! Their SFR debut is OUT NOW!
Minneapolis-based 3 piece hip-hop band NO BIRD SING has signed to STRANGE FAMOUS RECORDS!
Their new album “DEFINITION SICKNESS” is available worldwide now.
Order your copy on SIGNED CD or MP3 DOWNLOAD by clicking here!
photo credit: Cameron Wittig
Stand outs in the indie-rap haven of Minnesota, No Bird Sing combines the talents of emcee Joe Horton, drummer/producer Graham O’Brien, and guitarist/producer Robert Mulrennan. With “Definition Sickness”, the trio has maintained the integrity of their live-band roots while exploring a more produced sound that ranges from stark minimalism to lush expansiveness.
The first single, “DON’T THINK”, is a brooding track where Horton shares vocal duties with SFR label head SAGE FRANCIS.
Listen to “Don’t Think” featuring SAGE FRANCIS:
Other guests on the album include FIX collective cohorts Crescent Moon (Kill the Vultures) and Kristoff Krane, as well as Sadistik, Chastity Brown, James Diers (Halloween, Alaska), Aby Wolf, Adam Svec. and Molly Dean.
Check out the first video from the album, “AND WAR” featuring Molly Dean!:
NBS released their eponymous debut to critical acclaim in 2009. Their 2011 follow-up, “Theft of the Commons”, along with the US tour dates that followed, served to expand their loyal, burgeoning fanbase across the Midwest and beyond.
Their SFR debut, “Definition Sickness”, offers a meditative commentary on modern life, owing much to leftist political theorists like Howard Zinn as well as Eastern-leaning philosophers like Alan Watts and Lao Tzu. Musically the dark, transcendent instrumentation of the record creates a rich and varied soundscape that will immediately entice fans of multiple genres. Repeat listeners will be rewarded by both the layered lyrical themes and the ear candy that’s provided by the nuanced sonic compositions.
“If you took away the vocals, you’d never know it was hip hop,” admits drummer/producer Graham O’Brien. “We’re just investigating the relationship between hip hop and other genres—taking the spoken, rhythmic word and putting it in other places.”
“That’s what creativity is,” vocalist Horton says. “It’s coming to this point where you don’t know exactly what you’re doing and having to figure out what to do. The second you’re not doing that, you’re just rehashing old shit.”
All Songs Written by No Bird Sing
Vocals & Lyrics by Joe Horton
Guitars & Keys by Robert Mulrennan
Drums by Graham O’Brien
Produced by Graham O’Brien (except where noted)
Recorded by Adam Krinsky
Mixed by Adam Krinsky & Graham O’Brien at Bellows Studio
Mastered by Huntley Miller at HM Mastering
Additional engineering by Robert Mulrennan & Graham O’Brien
Additional vocal production by Joe Horton
01 Breathless f. Chastity Brown
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Cello by Michelle Kinney
02 Apogee f. Aby Wolf
Produced by Robert Mulrennan
Co-Produced by Graham O’Brien
03 Reality Hunger f. James Diers
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Co-produced by Robert Mulrennan
04 Target Practice f. Kristoff Krane
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Co-Produced by Robert Mulrennan
05 Flag Waver
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Cello by Michelle Kinney
06 Boom Day f. Crescent Moon
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Organ by Joe Horton
07 Heaven and Other Drugs
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Co-produced by Robert Mulrennan, Joe Horton
08 Rapture Muffin f. Adam Svec
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Co-Produced by Robert Mulrennan, Joe Horton
Rhodes by Joe Horton
Piano by Adam Krinsky
09 And War f. Molly Dean
Produced by Graham O’Brien
10 Vinestar f. Sadistik
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Additional vocals by Aby Wolf
11 Fashionable Cannibal
Produced by Graham O’Brien
Bass by Casey O’Brien
12 Don’t Think f. Sage Francis
Produced by Robert Mulrennan
Co-Produced by Graham O’Brien
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