New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Bird Records is proud to present the NOT OUT OF TIME EP, a 10" limited edition vinyl and digital release from BIRDSEED, an American rock band formed in 2012 that has been attracting large numbers of Gen X and Gen Y fans with their classic Fleetwood Mac-meets-Wilco sound. This new release will be available worldwide online and in stores August 4, 2017, and features some amazing players and solid, compelling songs that are the manifestation of many hours of hard work and drive. With an interesting backstory of ordinary moms and dads chasing a teenage dream, BIRDSEED was formed while their children were studying together at the Bird School of
Music in San Francisco, CA. Their songs address adult angst, lost loves, perseverance through pain, and the transcendent power of music.
BIRDSEED consists of Kerry Landreth (vocals), Jamie Goodyear (vocals, guitar, keyboards, vocoder, bongos),
Mason Morfit (guitar), Scott Bell (drums), Brian Hetherington (keyboards),
Peter Landreth (saxophone) and Lane Murchison (bass).
Mason Morfit, Scott Bell, and original bassist
George Bolton formed the band with a limited repertoire of rock covers and no lead vocalist, yet despite this were booked into headlining role at the
Battle of the Dad Bands 2012 at San Francisco's legendary Bimbo's 365 Club. In a panic, they recruited Kerry Landreth as lead singer, which proved to be a turning point for the group. BIRDSEED began to build a loyal fan base attracted to Landreth's star power and the band's raw sound.
When Bolton left the band shortly thereafter to focus on his horse racing passion, Lane Murchison (founder of the Bird School of Music) stepped in on bass. Jamie Goodyear (formerly of Naughty Donkey) joined in 2013, expanding the instrumentation and allowing for intricate male/female vocal harmonies. Murchison and Goodyear's musicianship tightened the band's sound and added much more polished arrangements. Kerry Landreth's brother
Peter was then recruited on saxophone, making BIRDSEED a true family affair.
This was made more poignant when lead singer Kerry Landreth was diagnosed with incurable breast cancer in 2015. This was another catalyst for the band, adding an urgency to their gig schedule and inspiring their first original songwriting. BIRDSEED signed to San Francisco's Bird Records in late 2015 and digitally released their first two singles, "Next Trip Around the Sun" and "More Than I Needed the Truth," in time for the Christmas holidays.
In January 2016, BIRDSEED opened for Poi Dog Pondering at the Great American
Music Hall and opened for
Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats at The Independent in San Francisco the following October. As openers, they drew a large portion of the crowd to both venues, with Landreth's personal connection to the crowd fueling the energy in both rooms.
On the single "Next Trip Around the Sun," Landreth comes to grips with mortality, discards her fear, surrenders control, and achieves her dreams. In "More Than I Needed the Truth," the band addresses deep conflicts in maturing relationships, and the need to give up being right in order to be loved. Landreth recorded vocal tracks for both songs only hours after receiving radiation treatment, and had to lie on the floor between takes.
The band's next two singles, "
We Can Do It" and "Not Out of Time," were recorded under similarly painful conditions and released in the
Spring of 2016. The first was co-written with Landreth's 9-year-old daughter Bebe, who can be heard on the recording, and was adopted as an anthem at Bebe's girls' school. "Not Out of Time" encapsulates the band's late-in-life awakening and its race against the clock.
The ballad "I Want You to Know" came out in early 2017, ahead of this summer's release of the NOT OUT OF TIME 10" Vinyl EP and digital release. The track is a love letter from a parent to a child, with the knowledge that the child won't fully understand the message until years in the future.
The name BIRDSEED was inspired by a dream image of seed being thrown to a flying group of pigeons swarming to catch the food in mid-air. This has served as an apt metaphor for the band's music, its relationship with its fans, and the atmosphere at its shows. The story of the band and its fans was featured in the rockumentary "Birdseed: Songs from the Nest," which can be streamed at www.birdseedband.com
BIRDSEED will be touring in the Fall of 2017 in support of their NOT OUT OF TIME 10" Vinyl EP, which is available worldwide online and in stores August 4, 2017.
For more information about BIRDSEED and the NOT OUT OF TIME EP, or upcoming tour dates, please visit the band's website and social media pages via www.birdseedband.com
