Open Relationship

Open Relationship - Review

Chicago's Bird Names seem to be aiming for some of the charm and whimsy of Oklahoma's Flaming Lips on Open Relationship, which may be described simultaneously as lo-fi and high concept. Group members Albert Schatz, Colin Hartz, Nora Brank, and David Lineal, abetted by engineer Blue Hawaii (aka Griffin Rodriguez) take a bull-in-a-china-shop approach to the studio that involves overstuffed arrangements recorded at distortion levels with plenty of echo and reverb. There is a definite pop style, at least in intention, although the playing is relentlessly amateurish. "Treeless Island Peopled by Birds" sounds something like a collection of music boxes caught in a traffic jam, while "Discontent Among Men" could be a lost track from the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds, that is, if it had been mixed by a monkey. There are chanted or recited words floating around here and there, although most of the vocals are wordless expressions such as "ah" and "na-na." The continually clashing sounds and bum notes make one appreciate the care put into Phil Spector's famous Wall of Sound. This music sounds like that wall crashing down. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide