It took a long time for Brooklyn musician John Brodeur to find himself. After releasing several little-heard solo albums, Brodeur first imagined Bird Streets as a live band in 2016 before taking the moniker as a de facto nom de guerre with the release of the self-titled 2018 LP. And that’s when things clicked.“I used to write about finding ways out of the darkness,” says Brodeur. “Now I’m more interested in exploring and creating a map of that place. In some ways, adopting the Bird Streets name allowed me to write more openly about myself.”
The sound of Bird Streets, recorded in collaboration with producer and multi-instrumentalist Jason Falkner (Beck, Daniel Johnston), was both fresh and familiar–a dynamic collection of introspective indie-rock and power-pop that drew liberally on the music of decades past without being bluntly nostalgic, with Brodeur’s voice like an old friend you’re meeting for the first time.
Brodeur is currently preparing a new Bird Streets album featuring production by Patrick Sansone (Wilco) and Michael Lockwood (Aimee Mann), due for release in late 2022. As a live act, Brodeur and Bird Streets have recorded sessions for Daytrotter and BreakThru Radio, and toured with an eclectic mix of artists including Juliana Hatfield, Alana Davis, Royston Langdon (Spacehog) and They Might Be Giants.
Glide is premiering the dazzling “Unkind” (ft. Aimee Mann) a grand statement of harmony recalling the power-pop ethos of Nada Surf along with the swooning compositional flair of Sky Blue Sky Wilco. Brodeur offers fervently emotive vocals, generating a cinematic flair and an openhearted directness reflecting indie rock’s most operative tunesmiths. Aimee Mann lends her bass chops to the mix here allowing Brodeur to build on her cascading rhythmic strokes.
