Hi. I'm Rece Zimmeht. I play guitar in Spokenwords and co-run Tableside Productions and Tableside Magazine with my good friend, Mark. I'm stoked to be writing for Mouths Made Wordless.
Bled Out and Painted Blue is the first full-length release from Orange County screamo band, Clay Birds. The band consists of Aron (also of Composition Booklet) on guitar and vocals, JVB/Jack (also of Kiowa) on drums, Sam on guitar and vocals, and Italy on bass. They take inspiration from groups such as Iwrotehaikusaboutcannibalisminyouryearbook, Jeromes Dream, and letters to catalonia. Prior to Bled Out and Painted Blue, the band had released a 1x2 split with Knumears, a 4 song EP, a reflection of, and a single, living to tell the tale. This debut was recorded by Nick Trip, mixed and mastered by Aron, and cover art made by Phoenix and JVB.
In A Letter Sent Back to Me, you are greeted with the sound of rainfall, then what feels like a much needed hug of open guitar chords. A two count on the hi-hat then sends you into the full Clay Birds experience--Aron and Sam's distorted guitars, Sam's emotion-filled screams, JVB's sporadic and aggressive drums, and Italy's driving bass which all come together to create the perfect opener.
Run Away Far Far Away is the first track in which we hear Aron's vocals. The lyrics, “why can't you stay?'' sum up the emotion of this song, the deep void you feel without certain people around. At 2:03, you get a call out of “dope,” which has become one of my favorite callouts in emo music--second to *clap clap* in Like Starscream by Boston post-emo legends, On Broken Wings.
Miguel Song. Aron's near-mathy intro riff shows you that Clay Birds are more than your typical melodic screamo band. This track proves how chaotic and heavy the band can truly be, without sacrificing beautiful and, honestly, odd melodies. At minute 2:11, the band blasts into a 3.5 second cover of This Charming Man, which had me in literal tears of laughter the first time I heard it.
Living to Tell the Tale, a re-recording of the band's single, shows their Jeromes Dream influence the most, in my opinion. The closing scream, “bury my ashes in ashtrays,” is deeply haunting and one of the best moments on this album.
Sleep Paralysis (interlude) is a break from the distorted chaos they've given us so far--a 2:05-long, warm embrace of clean, alluring melodic guitar, calm but driving drums, and a lead guitar, drenched in reverb like a dream. It is by far the most beautiful, comforting, yet deeply emotional song on the LP.
Sleep Paralysis. Starting with the lyrics “I am everything and nothing at all,” you know immediately what you're in for with this song; A deep, cutting, emotional gem with dirty guitars, blasting drums, and an amazing breakdown.
Six is my second favorite track on the album. The first 43 seconds show the band's hardcore roots the most, in my opinion. Then, out of nowhere, you get a beautiful riff and deeply lyrics like “I know it's cold out tonight,” and “in the future I promise a better life,” to add to the wound that this album has left you with already.
Call Out My Name is absolutely my favorite track on. At 1:29, you dive into what I would say is the best moment on the album--angelic vocals from Italy, heartfelt screams from Sam, and amazing instrumentals to back them. At 4:22 you are launched back into distorted guitars and vocals from Aron singing lyrics like “when all is wrong call out my name." This is the perfect emotionally-charged ending.
Overall 8.5/10
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| photos courtesy of Clay Birds. |
Bled Out and Painted Blue is the first full-length release from Orange County screamo band, Clay Birds. The band consists of Aron (also of Composition Booklet) on guitar and vocals, JVB/Jack (also of Kiowa) on drums, Sam on guitar and vocals, and Italy on bass. They take inspiration from groups such as Iwrotehaikusaboutcannibalisminyouryearbook, Jeromes Dream, and letters to catalonia. Prior to Bled Out and Painted Blue, the band had released a 1x2 split with Knumears, a 4 song EP, a reflection of, and a single, living to tell the tale. This debut was recorded by Nick Trip, mixed and mastered by Aron, and cover art made by Phoenix and JVB.
In A Letter Sent Back to Me, you are greeted with the sound of rainfall, then what feels like a much needed hug of open guitar chords. A two count on the hi-hat then sends you into the full Clay Birds experience--Aron and Sam's distorted guitars, Sam's emotion-filled screams, JVB's sporadic and aggressive drums, and Italy's driving bass which all come together to create the perfect opener.
Run Away Far Far Away is the first track in which we hear Aron's vocals. The lyrics, “why can't you stay?'' sum up the emotion of this song, the deep void you feel without certain people around. At 2:03, you get a call out of “dope,” which has become one of my favorite callouts in emo music--second to *clap clap* in Like Starscream by Boston post-emo legends, On Broken Wings.
Miguel Song. Aron's near-mathy intro riff shows you that Clay Birds are more than your typical melodic screamo band. This track proves how chaotic and heavy the band can truly be, without sacrificing beautiful and, honestly, odd melodies. At minute 2:11, the band blasts into a 3.5 second cover of This Charming Man, which had me in literal tears of laughter the first time I heard it.
Living to Tell the Tale, a re-recording of the band's single, shows their Jeromes Dream influence the most, in my opinion. The closing scream, “bury my ashes in ashtrays,” is deeply haunting and one of the best moments on this album.
Sleep Paralysis (interlude) is a break from the distorted chaos they've given us so far--a 2:05-long, warm embrace of clean, alluring melodic guitar, calm but driving drums, and a lead guitar, drenched in reverb like a dream. It is by far the most beautiful, comforting, yet deeply emotional song on the LP.
Sleep Paralysis. Starting with the lyrics “I am everything and nothing at all,” you know immediately what you're in for with this song; A deep, cutting, emotional gem with dirty guitars, blasting drums, and an amazing breakdown.
Six is my second favorite track on the album. The first 43 seconds show the band's hardcore roots the most, in my opinion. Then, out of nowhere, you get a beautiful riff and deeply lyrics like “I know it's cold out tonight,” and “in the future I promise a better life,” to add to the wound that this album has left you with already.
Call Out My Name is absolutely my favorite track on. At 1:29, you dive into what I would say is the best moment on the album--angelic vocals from Italy, heartfelt screams from Sam, and amazing instrumentals to back them. At 4:22 you are launched back into distorted guitars and vocals from Aron singing lyrics like “when all is wrong call out my name." This is the perfect emotionally-charged ending.
Overall 8.5/10
Foster here, I'll be short, but I just wanted to re-enforce Rece's opinions here by saying that this album is truly wonderful, and an incredible work of art that stands out against the over-saturated market of heavy emo so sharply. Call Out My Name was immediately my favorite as well, and I played it end-to-end nearly forty times after the first listen. There's something so primal and universal about the both the timbre and content of the screams within--a sonic manifestation of the need to be seen, yet for this not to be in vain--to be the one needed. Incredible work, Clay Birds. And everyone say thank you to Rece for writing this epic review. Thanks for reading.
-Foster
Check out Tableside Magazines' YouTube, they interview great underground artists in their B-Sides series and film live sets. Check out Febuary's B-Sides.
See Clay Birds at Home To Heart Records festival on June 28th at Coyote Studios.
Also see them at Che Fest on June 29th-30th at Che Cafe.
Also seem them on tour on July 5th-16th.
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