Very mellow - This album is more mellow than her previous ones. I loved the Drive album, and Beautiful Collision is okay as well. But this one... I just have a hard time distinguishing one song from the next. I definitely preferred her earlier work. Still love her voice, though.
Somewhat disappointing - I loved both Beautiful Collision and Drive because they work so well together. Each sounds just different enough, allowing me to like one better for a while just to favour the other again. At least I could find a very nice balance between the two.Birds is somewhat like Drive, but unlike Drive, there s nothing really special or quirky about it. It s Drive mellowed down and gone bland. Bic s voice is still pretty of course, but Birds sounds just awfully flat and the songs predictable.
Haunting - I was familiar with Bic Runga s singing and liked it very much. However, I was initially too cheap to shell out the $27 for this item. When I finally broke down and bought it, it was well worth the price. This is one of the best CDs in my collection. She has a hauntingly beautiful soft voice, sort of like a Norah Jones on acid. Don t let the price stop you, or you will be missing out on something special.
Mature, confident and excellent - Birds is the most mature album from Bic Runga yet. Where Drive and Beautiful Collision were a little more playful, this album is a little more soulful, a little more dark, yet still as beautiful (if not more) as her first two efforts.Bic has always sounded confident in her delivery, but this album shows her voice at the very front of almost all of the tracks, with the album on the most part being stripped of any noise to take the emphasis away from Runga s exquisite voice and her ability to write romantic and dreamy songs.Tracks like Ruby Nights , No Crying No More and Captured show just how far she has progressed since Drive . Each of these songs presenting a deliberate, assured artist, completely justifying Runga s decision to move away from an album based around singles.
Fantastic album - This newest release from Bic Runga is breath-taking. Birds has tracks with a wide variety of styles - from acoustic to ambient sub-pop. Blue blue Heart is my favorite track but No Crying No More and winning Arrow are fantastic. Runga s lyrics are complex and sophisticated - her observations of the struggles and pleasures of everyday life are articulate and blend beautifully with her music. If you like her, check out Gretchen Lieberum and her new album, Siren Songs. Both are great albums you can slip on for some perfect sensuous mood music - perfect for an intimate setting.