BELLA730V
Release Date: 2 March 2018
"It suggested that the singer-songwriter liked nothing more than lying in a hammock, a cannabis cloud above him, staring at the stars. Not so. His third solo LP proves that he’s more complicated than his hippy persona intimates, its widescreen ambition revealing his kinship with Roger Waters, whose band he joined last year. Notably, there are drum machines and synthesisers, giving parts of Rare Birds an 80s art-rock feel, plus a newfound fondness for the space between the notes." - The Guardian
"With a lush rock sound that recalls recent albums by The War on Drugs, Wilco and others, “Rare Birds” uses familiar sounds to take you on a totally new journey — and it’s an album in the classic sense, where the songs add up to more than the sum of their parts." - Variety
"The likes of the magnificent mid-tempo melancholy-fest "Me" - elevated by a sparkling instrumental mid-section that is destined to be counted amongst 2018's prettiest moments - are easier to associate with Wilson's past templates. However, the likes of vintage synth-saturated, icy glide of "Over The Midnight" - subtle echoes of War on Drugs, perhaps - sound completely fresh, with Wilson's resolutely organic ideals given a subtle electronic and synthetic sheen whilst still retaining their core principles of warmth and live-sounding dynamics." - UNCUT