I've always liked the name At Swim Two Birds....no idea what it means but I think it sounds nice. Well it sounds more than nice.. it sounds intriguing! They are in fact the fella who is/ was Quigley, who was half of the Montgolfier brothers and he's called Roger to boot. I packed a lot of information into that sentence in a stupid order. I'm sticking with it though cos I like it. There's a certain quality about the music on offer on 'Before You Left' that I find really appealing. For starters it's really soulful sounding.... he sounds like he's meaning what he's singing and it's delivered in a convincing way. The music borders on the more reflective sombre side of things and albeit far from complete out and out misery it's introspective at heart. Introspective is how I'd sum up this album if I had to do one word reviews (I wish...) and I think you could probably sum up all of their albums in this way if I'm honest. It's all very charming simple music where the guitars and vocals rule the way through the occasional keyboard and drum. The singers voice is great... I could listen to it all day only that would make jack a very dull boy. At Swim Two Birds and nothing else makes Jack A dull boy. At Swim Two Birds and nothing else makes Jack A dull boy. At Swim Two Birds and nothing else makes Jack A dull boy. At Swim Two Birds and nothing else makes Jack A dull boy.... err I digress. I like this anyway. It's simple and effective soulful sounding introspective music with warm sounding melodies which get their hooks into you.
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Sound clips for Before You Left by At Swim Two Birds: on CD at Norman Records UK. CD, Vespertine & Son, V&S102 , £10.79.
Third solo album by the voice of the Montgolfier Brothers.”Before You Left” underlines Roger Quigley's credentials as an expert purveyor of slowly unravelling melancholic pop. Over more than a decade, both on his own and as leader of Manchester's Montgolfier Brothers, Quigley has developed a distinctive style of composition and delivery. The voice, increasingly rich and sonorous, presides over a backdrop of delicate, repetitive guitar arpeggios and sweeping cello. The mood - soporific, hypnotic - recalls Spiritualized's woozy refrains as well as the likes of Bill Callahan and Leonard Cohen, with whom Quigley has been compared in the past. Regular live collaborators Sophia Lockwood and Otto Smart bolster the music, and there's an appearance by Doves keyboardist Martin Rebelski, who wrote and arranged Let Her Go with Quigley. With a knowing nod to A Man Alone, Sinatra's bleak exposition of love and loss, Before You Left unblinkingly explores the collapse of a relationship with the help of recurring melodic motifs. In a recent blog, former Creation and Poptones boss Alan McGee declared: "With their baroque music, regretful lyrics and northern soulfulness, the Montgolfier Brothers should have been huge". With the release of “Before You Left” there's still time to catch up with At Swim Two Birds.
Other items by At Swim Two Birds
Quigley's Point At Swim Two Birds CD, £9.99 Sorry - sold out.
