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Spreading lush electronic arrangments and rhodes electric piano under
the ever-lonesome beacon of the country (pedal steel), Birds &
Batteries discover the urban pastoral in a simple song. Comprable to
Neil Young and M83, or Randy Newman meets Gary Newman.
PRAISE FOR "I'LL NEVER SLEEP AGAIN"
"A little bit country, a little bit rock n' roll, a little bit electronic and all kinds of intriguing pop."
-The Onion AV Club
"Blending together hypnotic vocals and melancholy melodies, Birds & Batteries have combined the best of both worlds and successfully earned a place at the top in the Local Band ranks. With influences ranging from Daft Punk to Neil Young, the band is a nuclear bomb waiting to explode all over indie countdowns and the pages of Spin."
-Zero Mag
"Birds & Batteries is an oddly appropriate moniker for a band whose synthy soundscapes seem to float effortlessly in the air."
-Mother Jones
"We don't say this lightly, because there are really a lot of great artists coming out of the Bay Area, but we do have a current favorite: Birds & Batteries. We've been telling you about this co-ed quartet for a while now and our expectations for their new record were really high. Thankfully, its good news: we love "I'll Never Sleep Again". It's still the B&B we met on their last release, but this time the woeful steel guitar and Mike Sempert's deep drawl are buffered by better productions. including warm bursts of synths so thick you could hold them in your hand. The record starts out by making the simple, straightforward Neil Young classic, "Heart of Gold" into an existential epic, and we love the song "Star Clusters" so much thats it's secured a solid entry in our top 10 tracks of the year."
-The SFist
"Birds & Batteries is making some of the most innovative music I've heard lately."
-The Deli Magazine
"I'll Never Sleep Again makes good on the promise of Michael Sempert's first self released disc from 2005, Nature vs. Nature, fleshing out his bleary electrocountry songs with a warm studio sheen. The palette is a satisfying mix of synthesizers and pedal steel, with washes of sound bouying Sempert's undertow croon. It's hard not to hear a lot Neil Young in the Harvest-era balladry. . .with standout tracks like the Fleetwood Mac-ish Turnstyles taking up well-worn grooves remeniscent of '70s rock's mellowest highs."
-SF Bay Guardian
"I'll Never Sleep Again is a damn good album - every bit as good as "Nature vs. Nature." Although the previous album did amazing things with garage folk-tronica, the new album has kept the same general aesthetics but also utilized insightful production to capture and hone that sound."
-Crazytalk.org
"While Nature vs. Nature… was strong," I’ll Never Sleep Again" represents significant advancements in both production and songwriting. The new songs are ambitious, featuring dense layering of synths and effects, and Sempert’s voice is strong and commanding. Unlike many releases, the album feels like an album, with songs leading into each other and themes developing as the release progresses."
-The Bay Bridged
PRAISE FOR "NATURE VS. NATURE"
"San Francisco’s Birds & Batteries isn’t just a standout local band, but one that could hit the national radar. What distinguishes it? The trio’s debut, Nature vs. Nature (2005), meshes synths and drum-machine beats with a lo-fi country aesthetic for a sound that’s danceable but also contemplative."
-East Bay Express
"Tip your hat to San Francisco resident Mike Sempert, aka Birds & Batteries , for making eccentric music without worrying about fitting into an easy genre."
-SF Weekly
"This music has a gritty sound that could pass as either alt-country garage rock or fuzzy-synth psychedelia. No song remains completely in either category. Admirably, much of the album settles in that space between organic warmth and synthetic cool and feels right at home."
-West Coast Performer
"Blending together rootsy Americana, post-rock and electronica, the stuttery programmed rhythms and hypnotic loops of arpeggiated melodies contrast well with Sempert's deep, melancholic vocals and guitar, bass and drums."
-Aquarius Records
"I recently received a copy of Birds & Batteries Nature Vs. Nature and have to say its one of the most unique and best things I’ve heard in quite some time. . .This album is a lo-fi gem that deserves more recognition that it found upon its initial release. Any label reading this should immediately look up Birds & Batteries and pick Nature Vs. Nature up for a proper release."
-Buzzgrinder.com
"Birds & Batteries' "Nature vs. Nature" is trying to add something fresh to the musical lexicon, and I think they've succeeded. Especially considering that all the music on the album, all the layers of beats, riffs, melodies and harmonies, came straight out of Mike Sempert's brain."
-Crazytalk.org
