Rumours are flying around in Tokyo. Not the Tokyo in Japan. The Tokyo in Perth, where guitarist/songwriter Adam Sparks from homegrown collaborative outfit Birds of Tokyo is calling from today. Apparently there is a third album on the way. Apparently there are a lot of things going on with the band.
One thing’s for sure. Universes is about to launch. At the time of the interview, the official countdown to the album release is nine days. “It’s pretty damned exciting,” Sparks laughs. “It’s always a lot of fun putting out a new album, but there is that momentary concern as well. An album is like a child. You worry about it, because it’s almost like putting them out to the wolves. They’ll either be accepted and loved, or eaten up.”
In the terms of an album, being eaten up by fans surely isn’t a bad thing – especially since Birds of Tokyo secured Tim Palmer to lend his magic to the album. “We wanted someone who would bring a big, lush sound to our music, yet wouldn’t give it that huge, ‘American’ sound. We didn’t want a homogenised record. I was a huge fan of Tim’s work with The Butterfly Effect and Eskimo Joe,” Sparks gushes, admiration and mutual respect evident in his voice. And admiration is well deserved. This is the same Tim Palmer that mixed for the likes of The Cure, U2 and Pearl Jam. Swanky company for the boys from Perth, but no doubt deserved as well.
The lead single from the album is Silhouettic, a powerful yet very accessible track that has received quite a bit of airplay and attention. The second single to drop from the album is Broken Bones, which possesses the prequel clip to that of Silhouettic. “We did that on purpose. We thought it’d be funny if we filmed it in order but released it back to front to annoy punters,” Sparks says mischievously. “In all seriousness, we chose to release Silhouettic first, because it was the in-you-face single that would make people sit up and take notice.”
Notice they did, as many of the shows for the single launch sold out around Australia. Having just wrapped that up, the band has announced a series of shows to celebrate the launch of the album. “We’re going everywhere! Places we haven’t toured before, like Coffs Harbour, Bendigo, and Sunshine Coast. It’s going to be a good mix of regional and urban locations,” Sparks explains. “Basically, we told our tour manager: ‘Look, we’re going to be on the road for the next six weeks. We’d like to play as many shows as possible.’”
Kicking off in August, the break gives fans plenty of time to listen to and familiarise themselves with the new material. The band plan on drawing heavily from Universes this time round. “It’s a good thing, us taking a break before touring. We’d love for the fans to have a chance to listen to the album in full, so that when they come to see us, they’ll recognise the tracks,” Sparks muses. “There’s nothing worse than going to a gig and spending forty minutes standing still because it’s all new and unfamiliar.”
New and unfamiliar is a now foreign concept for the Birds. They’ve been kicking around Perth’s local music scene since 2003, although they have really risen to prominence the past eighteen months. “To many people we appear to be a young band, but we started writing for the band about five years ago. We’re pretty lucky to have achieved what we have so far.” Perks of their heights have included recording sessions in Los Angeles, where between work sessions the boys were able to spend some time together at the dingiest frat house they could think of – Hooters. “I know its clichéd, but it just seemed to be the thing to do at the time.” A trace of embarrassment mars Sparks’ delighted laughter.
Achieving such heights has its flipside though, with comparisons drawn between the Birds and frontman Ian Kenny’s other main project, Perth prog-rock outfit Karnivool. “It’s not really an issue. We know our place in the world, and we’re super happy with that the little Birds machine is achieving. We’re all friends and are respectful or each other’s work and achievements,” Sparks states adamantly.
Comparisons aside, the anticipation surrounding the release of Universes signifies Birds of Tokyo’s place in Perth’s continued production of some of Australia’s finest rock acts. Is it something in the water? “Who knows?” Sparks speculates. “I think it’s because we don’t have the big music ‘industry’ over here, which allows bands to be who they want to be, and not be too concerned with that everyone else [read: agents, industry representatives, managers] are looking for. As a result, it creates a healthy scene to build and produce music.”
One can only hope that the scene maintains that magic element that has made it so successful so far, considering the third album ‘potentially’ in the works. “There is new music for Birds in general, which we may or may not use. The writing never really stops. I guess, the day it does, then that’s when I’ll probably leave music alone.” For now, at least, Birds of Tokyo are in full flight, well in control of their universe, and inviting everyone to take a look inside.
Universes is out now. Catch Birds of Tokyo touring nationally in August/September.
THURSDAY 21 AUGUST – Metropolis Fremantle, Fremantle WA
FRIDAY 22 AUGUST – Prince of Wales Hotel, Bunbury WA
SATURDAY 23 AUGUST – Settlers Tavern, Margaret River WA
WEDNESDAY 27 AUGUST – Kalgoorlie Hotel, Kalgoorlie WA
THURSDAY 28 AUGUST – Esperance Hotel, Esperance WA
FRIDAY 29 AUGUST – Nsomniax Lounge, Albany WA
THURSDAY 4 SEPTEMBER – Arena, Brisbane QLD
FRIDAY 5 SEPTEMBER – Sands Tavern, Maroochydore QLD
SATURDAY 6 SEPTEMBER – Coolangatta Hotel, Coolangatta, QLD
SUNDAY 7 SEPTEMBER – Great Northern Hotel, Byron Bay, NSW
TUESDAY 9 SEPTEMBER – Hoey Moey, Coffs Harbour NSW
WEDNESDAY 10 SEPTEMBER – Mona Vale Hotel, Mona Vale NSW
THURSDAY 11 SEPTEMBER – Wollongong Uni, Wollongong NSW
FRIDAY 12 SEPTEMBER – Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle NSW
SATURDAY 13 SEPTEMBER – The Metro,Sydney NSW
SUNDAY 14 SEPTEMBER – ANU Bar, Canberra ACT
TUESDAY 16 SEPTEMBER – Sodens, Albury NSW
WEDNESDAY 17 SEPTEMBER – The Pub, Bendigo VIC
FRIDAY 19 SEPTEMBER – The Hi-Fi, Melbourne VIC
SATURDAY 20 SEPTEMBER – Ferntree Gully Hotel, Belgrave VIC
SUNDAY 21 SEPTEMBER – Pier Hotel, Frankston VIC
WEDNESDAY 24 SEPTEMBER – Karova Lounge, Ballarat VIC
THURSDAY 25 SEPTEMBER – Batman Fawkner Inn, Launceston TAS
FRIDAY 26 SEPTEMBER – Hobart Uni, Hobart TAS
SATURDAY 27 SEPTEMBER – The Gov, Adelaide SA
