I hold a strong belief that Birdy is the soft-spoken Adele. With her lovely package of great vocals and heart-wrenching songs, what’s there not to love about her?
Birdy rose to fame in 2011 with her self-titled album of reworked covers. She made them so unique to her style that most people thought her cover of “Skinny Love” was an original song. Although that album was very popular and loved, it just seemed a bit too quiet. We all knew she was holding something back, and that “something” is what comes out on this record.
Without having listened to Birdy since that beloved debut, Beautiful Lies immediately stunned me. I remembered her as not one to belt her vocals and create quite upbeat songs, but that’s exactly what she does on this record from the get-go. In the first song “Growing Pains”, you can tell that she is way more comfortable than she was on her debut, not to mention her voice has improved. “Growing Pains” is very entrancing without being overproduced and makes you want to sing along but keeping that classic Birdy charm.
The first half of the record is much of the same. “Keeping Your Head Up”, one of the bigger hits from this record, has quite an explosive chorus that sounds like it’s destined for the radio. “Wild Horses” is an uplifting song, kind of like the “Independent Woman Pt. I” of her career; it is a realization of self and being strong. It very much sounds like the type of song meant to be screamed from the rooftops.
Of course, because it’s Birdy, the record has its fair share of tear-worthy songs. The most notable are “Shadow”, which has a haunting yet comforting quality, “Deep End”, which sounds almost straight off her first album with its chorus containing just a piano and whisper-like lyrics, and the title track, “Beautiful Lies”, which is so beautiful that it feels like a burst of sunlight after everything tragic has passed. It closes the record perfectly and makes everything feel complete, like a story.
Birdy has surely improved in every way imaginable from her first album. She’s gone from a quiet girl doing covers to an unafraid, creative artist. Though her journey is remarkable, she’s not nearly done yet; this is only her third album and I can’t imagine what’s coming next.
Highlights: “Wild Horses”, “Lifted”, “Beautiful Lies”
Beautiful Lies is out everywhere now. Buy it on iTunes here and listen on Spotify here.
- Today in Music History: April 7 - April 7, 2023
- EP Review: Michigander’s It Will Never Be The Same - March 31, 2023
- Deep Dive: Spotify’s ALT NOW Playlist - March 30, 2023
