There’s something about a great band name that intrigues us enough here at Send Me Your Ears that when we were asked to review ARN-IDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECTS AND ALIEN FRIENDS new song, Firebird, we smiled and said hell yes!
This is a strong rocking country folk song that grips your interest immediately.
From the moment the vocals come in, you know that this is a kind of folk tale put to music. A little Bob Dylan-ish in that it’s more about the lyrics than the melody, but nonetheless, the vocals and mix of backing vocals are just sublime. Vocal quality-wise we’re looking at the likes of Bellowhead and definitely not Dylan!
The banjo sits in the background plodding along, played excellently (I love a good banjo) and remind you all the time that you’re listening to a folk story. A tale of loneliness and rejection. Good, typical folk song material!
Great rise and fall throughout the song which helps to maintain the listeners interest. The almost poetic lyrics are crystal clear and kept me intrigued throughout.
I love the genre cross over with the electric kinda-grungey guitar that comes in and just adds a little more bite to the overall sound. I always tip my hat to a band that can effortlessly cross genres like this. Who needs these boundaries anyway!?
The repeated mandolin motif was well played and gave the whole song a sense of cohesion.
From a mix/master perspective, I think the backing vocals could do with some more stereo and panning. Listening to Bellowhead as a reference track and it feels more natural to be able to hear the additional singers across the board as if they were on a stage, rather than straight down the middle.
A wide boost at the top end would give a little more sheen and brightness and a low mid boost will give a little more warmth to the overall track. I personally would use a little more compression on the lead vocals to help them stand out a little stronger.
I am in love with this track. Its the perfect combination of storytale folk and modern indie rock and its done extremely well. A fantastic song from an exciting band and we can’t wait to hear more!
We give this track four ears out of five
