Nestled between the mountains and the sea, south coast legends, Shining Bird, have been hard at work putting the final touches on their debut album Leisure Coast.
If you weren’t already skitzin’ (as the boys would say) over the Bird’s forthcoming release, their album promo video “The Wonders Of The Leisure Coast” and new single “Stare Into The Sun” should be more than enough to get your blood pumping.
First off, let’s tackle the cinematic masterpiece that is the Leisure Coast promo video. Featuring a montage of salmon coloured sweaters, panning shots of the Illawarra escarpment and the iconic slow-mo group jump, this video has all the makings of a kitschy 90s tourism advert or maybe even an episode of Ship To Shore. In all seriousness, the album promo showcases all there is to love about the Bird; captivating creativity, a unique sense of humour and a distinctly Australiana edge.
Similarly, Stare Into the Sun, the second single from Leisure Coast, is a textbook Shining Bird track that encapsulates all of these qualities and more. Lead singer, Dane Taylor, describes the new tune as “a bliss-tering mirage of the Australian summer”. Written whilst “severely sunburnt and recorded in an aloe vera bath”, Dane said the recording process behind this particular track was an organic process that conjured “instant vibes” amongst the band. Propelled by Taylor’s hypnotic crooning, spirited percussion and a saucy sax solo, the track lulls you into a spellbinding stupor from the get-go. However, it is the outro of the track that makes Stare Into The Sun particularly compelling. “I personally love the second half of the song, when the big spaghetti western sounding guitar comes in at the end and the ‘we’re in love’ vocal brings it home,” says Taylor.
Leisure Coast will be available on September 6th through Spunk Records.