“With material this good, Idlewild’s hiatus could be rather long…” – Kerrang!
The Birthday Suit – solo project of Idlewild guitarist and songwriter Rod Jones – release their second album, A Conversation Well Rehearsed on 3rd December 2012; it’s the follow-up to their critically acclaimed debut The Eleventh Hour, which was released at the tail end of 2011 and received support from BBC Radio 1 Scotland, Kerrang!, Rock Sound, This Is Fake DIY and Drowned in Sound.
Whilst The Eleventh Hour heralded a triumphant return for Rod during Idlewild’s indefinite hiatus, A Conversation Well Rehearsed shows that Rod continues to develop his solo sound with an album that straddles the line between infectious spiky indie rock on tracks “Uh-huh Uh-huh” and “A Can Of Worms” and modern day melodic folk rock akin to bands like Frightened Rabbit and The Twilight Sad. “You Deserve So Much Better” and “Wait For The River” are wistful and beautifully melancholic, giving the album a real maturity and backbone. However, that infectious, catchy indie sound that made Idlewild famous is never too far away, especially on the band’s last single “Less Worthless Years” and album track “Bad Dreams”.
Album track “Uh-huh Uh-huh” is available to stream now on A Badge of Friendship’s Soundcloud page. You can download the full track via The Birthday Suit’s website.
Formed with Roddy Woomble and Colin Newton in Edinburgh in 1995, Idlewild spent the last 16 years becoming one of Scotland’s most beloved indie rock acts. But after seven studio albums, four top 20 singles and numerous world tours, including supporting bands such as REM, Pearl Jam, U2 and The Rolling Stones, the band decided to take a break to concentrate on their individual solo projects.
Since The Birthday Suit released their debut last year, the band have embarked upon several successful UK tours and gained many fans in the press with This Is Fake DIY noting their debut was “packed with hooks” and “pounding basslines”, The 405 claiming they were a “soon-to-be-great band” and their debut picking-up a solid 8/10 review in Rock Sound and 4 Ks in Kerrang! Magazine.
A Conversation Well Rehearsed cements The Birthday Suit’s place in the UK music scene with Rod proving he is continuing to transcend beyond Idlewild’s musical foundations, laying his own roots as a solo artist.
A Conversation Well Rehearsed is available to pre-order now from The Birthday Suit’s website. The album is only available on CD via the pre-order link on the front page until October 19th 2012 and albums will be posted within 10 days of the pre-prder closing date (19th October)
