Golden Daze provides a unique listening experience for all those willing to give the Wildbirds a chance. This band hails from Wisconsin and this release is their second studio effort. The Wildbirds consist of Jon Jon Fries on vocals and percussion, Matthew Reetz on lead guitar, and mellotron, Nicholas Stuart on lead vocals, guitar, and piano, and Michael Christopher on bass. Golden Daze features an organic stripped down production style accented by a very Kings of Leon esque sound. This sound falls into two categories Indie Rock and Garage Rock. As is customary with these styles of rock, The Wildbirds feature dirty raucous guitar sounds, passionate vocals, and a disjointed loud rhythm section. The album features a unique Jekyll and Hyde like structure. The first six songs explode into the listener’s ear and open the album with a bang. These six tracks become the Hyde side of the album. The fourth number on the album, “It’s Alright Now,” reflects the Hyde side. It is laden with rousing guitar with introspective and thought-provoking vocals, which quickly shift into an incendiary solo; then the whole pattern repeats itself. After this little number ends, the sixth track, “All Get Away,” strikes a chord in my ear. As I listened, the upbeat fiery song carries this great mix of tones throughout the entire song. In the next song the Jekyll side comes to be. On this side the tones shift into reserved, deep, symphonic sound abound. On the seventh track, “Where has the Goodness Gone,” The Jekyll side comes into fruition. Folk like riffs and searing vocals form an excellent ballad. While this ballad style featured on the last five tracks become a bit whiny at times, the album reaches a fitting conclusion on “Suzanna.” This song invokes a vision of someone yearning for and searching for someone special and finally finding him or her.
Golden Daze is for those who want a simple riff driven rock. Once the album starts to spin give it a chance and you won’t be disapointed.
