When I first got to Austin and started in on getting to know the local music scene, I downloaded everything I could get my hands on. There are still several bands on my “Austin” playlist about which I know next to nothing. Follow That Bird used to be one of those bands. “The Ghosts That Wake You” somehow made its way from the Casual Victim Pile I compilation onto my hard drive where it was played roughly once a month. It’s a vicious piece of psychedelia – as if Grace Slick were more of a punk rocker – with a deliciously frenetic drum part and an urgency that doesn’t sacrifice tunefulness. But Follow That Bird (ostensibly named after a 1985 Sesame Street movie) are maddeningly glacial in the pace of new recorded material so there’s been little outside of this track since their 2008 debut EP. Until now.
On June 21st, they will be releasing a 7” single – “Wooden Bones” b/w “Antlers” – in anticipation of a full-length release later this year. Neither song has the dark undercurrents that infused “The Ghosts That Wake You” with that psychedelic vibe (“Antlers” is closer, though). But they mark a major leap forward for the group. These are choruses that don’t settle for a backroom bar, but instead ache for an amphitheater. Singer/guitarist Lauren Green and her bandmates maintain the desperate energy of their earlier material, while filling out the production and writing even better songs. This band is maturing right under our noses, and it has me incredibly excited for the eventual release of the debut album.
FTB will be going on a West Coast tour with other OVRLD favorites Ringo Deathstarr and …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead during the month of June, hitting up some of my favorite SoCal venues (Pomona’s Glass House on June 15th and LA’s Echo Plex on June 17th). They’ll also be stopping in our Sister City twice. West Coasters, get out to see them! And Austinites, you can join me at the Hole in the Wall on Sunday to send them off in style.
–Carter