Posted on: September 13, 2007 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

San Francisco, CA – Spreading lush electronic arrangements and rhodes electric piano under the ever-lonesome beacon of the county (pedal steel), Birds & Batteries discover the urban pastoral in a simple song. Comparable to Neil Young and M83, or Randy Newman meets Gary Newman.

Birds & Batteries have taken another step down their path of genre-defying music with I’ll Never Sleep Again. Equal parts explosive pop and epic balladry, four-on-the-floor beats and lonesome Americana, I’ll Never Sleep Again is set to be released on October 9th, 2007. Inspired by the sparkle of 70’s studio rock (Neil Young, Steely Dan) and driven by the compositional freedom of electronic music (Cornelius, Hot Chip), the sophomore album from Birds & Batteries further develops the band’s original components of analog and digital, pedal steel and synthesizers, country and city.

Recorded at John Vanderslice’s Tiny Telephone Studios by Ian and Jay Pellicci (Deerhoof, Erase Errata, Dilute, Okay), I’ll Never Sleep Again features the musicianship of a whole cast of Bay Area musicians in addition to producer/arranger Mike Sempert. The line-up includes Brian Michelson (drums) and the recent additions of Thomasson (electric piano/synth), Heinke (bass), Low Red Land’s Neil Thompson (pedal steel), The Music Lovers’ Katrina Weeks (viola) and Snowblink’s Daniela Gesundheit (vocals.)

From the bursting synths of “Starclusters” to the alluring take on Neil Young’s “Heart Of Gold” to the dance inducing “Turnstyle,” I’ll Never Sleep Again samples some of the Bay Area’s best musicians — resulting in lush instrumental arrangements Sempert could not have achieved on his own.

BIRDS & BATTERIES FALL TOUR:

09.14 San Francisco, CA @ The Elbo Room
10.03 Reno, NV @ Fort Ryland
10.04 Salt Lake City, UT @ TBA
10.05 Denver, CO @ The Lion’s Lair
10.06 Omaha, NE @ Saddle Creek Bar
10.07 Madison, WI @ The Klinic
10.08 Chicago, IL @ TBA
10.11 Pittsburgh, PA @ The Lava Lounge
10.12 New York, NY @ Lit Lounge
10.13 Somerville, MA @ P.A.’s Lounge
10.14 Brooklyn, NY @ Goodbye-Blue-Mondays
10.15 Washington, DC @ The Velvet Lounge
10.16 Raleigh, SC @ The Pour House Music Hall
10.17 Athens, GA @ Tasty World
10.18 Pensacola, FL @ Sluggo’s
10.19 Austin, TX @ TBA
10.20 Ft. Worth, TX @ The Moon
10.21 Denton, TX @ TBA
10.24 Tucson, AZ @ Café Passe
10.25 San Diego, CA @ Scolari’s Office
10.26 Los Angeles, CA @ TBA
10.29 San Francisco, CA @ The Knockout

Birds & Batteries on the Web: < http://www.birdsandbatteries.com/>
Press Resources: < http://www.planetarygroup.com/02birdsandbatteries.php>

ADVANCE PRAISE FOR I’LL NEVER SLEEP AGAIN:

“One of the most impressive things about this band, however, is their range, one that is not afraid to include some slide guitar on the title track, which in turn, makes them sound like a 21 century cowboy .” – Portland Mercury

“…a project that’s a little bit country, a little bit rock ‘n’ roll, a little bit clectronic, and all kinds of intriguing pop .” – The A.V. Club

“’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 synthesizer and pedal steel, with washes of sound buoying Sempert’s undertow croon.” – San Francisco Bay Guardian

“Isn’t a band’s Neil Young cover usually reserved for the end of an album or set? Not so in the case of Birds & Batteries, the San Francisco collective conceived of and led by Mike Sempert. His mournful, downcast wail of a voice fills up the corners of ‘Heart Of Gold,’ and the strange urgency of the arrangment — it sounds more like Grandaddy than anything country, or maybe it’s Americana with a side of analog glitch — keeps us interested. There’s a pedal steel player in Birds & Batteries, and all manner of wood and brass instruments find a spot in the combo next to squelchy keyboards and clever mixing that always finds a way to manipulate the track subtly enough to seem like you’re listening to ‘I’ll Never Sleep Again’ on a slightly-eaten cassette tape.” – Detour Mag

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