The Eleventh Hour by The Birthday Suit
The Birthday Suit is the solo project of Idlewilde guitarist Rod Jones, while the Scottish indie-rock music band is on hiatus. This instantly sets alarm bells ringing, as a ‘band on the side’ can often mean the passion and energy necessary are missing.
The Eleventh Hour by The Birthday Suit is released on Sing It Alone Records.
However, these fears are instantly allayed as the album plays. Yes, it does have a lot in common with the Idlewilde sound, but that’s to be expected – and yet The Birthday Suit still has its own identity while lacking none of the intensity.
The Eleventh Hour was released in November and is the The Birthday Suit’s debut album. It’s a mix of upbeat and melancholy, with strong guitar riffs and melodic harmonies throughout.
The first track, Do You Ever? is one of the rockier pieces of the album, which often strays into a more of a folky sound before heading straight back again. It’s fun, it’s interesting, and it draws you to listen to the rest of the album.
Their track On My Own is the type of song you just can’t help but find yourself nodding your head to. With the lyrics ‘And I don’t care if you don’t care for me no more’, it tells of the end of a relationship and the struggles with moving on alone. You’ll find yourself agreeing with the sentiment within the first chorus.
This upbeat track is directly followed by Sell it All, which is a shock to the system with its almost gloomy intro. It soon picks up a little though, and the poetic nature of the piece works well with the sincere empathy of the record.
Overall, the album is honest and appealing. Through Rob, it’s retained many of the elements that made Idlewilde so popular in the first place, while showing off a whole new side – especially in the form of female vocalist Jacqueline Irvine. This is definitely not just a side project to stay entertained – the heart and soul in obvious throughout.
The Eleventh Hour is available to buy now for £7.99 via The Birthday Suit’s website.
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