I confess I have no beat on what Les Big Byrd actually is but it’s always enjoyable. I had never really heard of them until they were added to the bill for Fuzz Club 2019. Going through spotify they seemed to be more of a pop outfit with some solid tracks. There were however some “Motorik” moments on the records which would exlain how they crept into the psych scene. When I saw them live it was none of the pop and straight forward motorik goodness. Explaining the music is tough. A motorik beat with poppy keyboard elements and classic rock guitar stylings might come close but it creates a unique style.Eternal Light Brigade continues this same trend. At times you can dance to tracks like “I Used To Be Lost But Now I’m Just Gone”. Then on Katamaran its straight up Motorik with an acoustic guitar and some Wah Wah on the electric. Another change of pace follows with an acoustic folky number with some piano solo on “Sunspots”. I think the band is at it’s best when they pick up the pace a bit on tracks like “Wasting My Life Is Taking Forever” One of the few bands where you actually get to listen to the lyrics, there is always a dark side to the words that makes me think this guy isnt well but maybe that’s just his style. “I Gave It All Up For you” is an interesting instrumental combining a bassline reminiscent of Kraftwork’s Autobahn with a bit more pace and for an added call back to their early work some flute. Start to finish easily Les Big Byrd’s best effort yet. The record closes out with some more experimental tracks with different pacing and breaking out the vocoder and effects. A very solid and enjoyable release.
Released by Chimp Limbs
