Although the members of Active Bird Community are all be in their (very) early twenties, the Brooklyn-based garage pop band have been playing together for more than a decade. Their new record Stick Around comes out January 27, so to celebrate the release, members of the group put together this weekend’s playlist. Listen and enjoy!
–Dave Lucas, Talkhouse Marketing Manager
Grandaddy – “Now It’s On”
My friend showed me Grandaddy during my sophomore year of high school. We’d bump AM 180 real loud in his parents’ house after school, but “Now It’s On” has always been my favorite. The solo feels so sarcastic, but still genuine somehow. Love the weird sounds that they get away with. -Tom
PWR BTTM – “1994”
I think PWR BTTM wins best new band of 2015-2016 by far. While pretty much every track on Ugly Cherries is a banger, I’m a sucker for catchy Oooos and crazy shredding. “1994” takes the cake. -Tom
Pinegrove – “Old Friends”
I think I listened to this song every day for about a month and a half. Every morning walking to the G train I would sing the lyrics out loud; it’s just a fucking perfect song. -Tom
Twin Peaks – “Walk to the One You Love”
This single was released toward the end of our senior year of college, around the time that we first saw them live at SXSW. We were in a good place, ready to graduate, feelin goooood; this song kept that feeling going. -Zach
Frankie Cosmos – “Is It Possible/Sleep Song”
I picked this song because it has one of my favorite lyrics ever, “What’s up with my fate/is it too late/or is it going to change.” It doesn’t seem like a party song, but it’s a party song to me. I can’t not jump around when I hear it. -Andrew
Built to Spill – “Distopian Dream Girl”
I think Built to Spill is always gonna be my favorite band. This is my favorite song by them. I love the breakdown chorus that builds back up into the main guitar riff. It’s just Doug Martsch doing his thing the entire song and it’s always my go-to when I’m trying to get pumped up. -Tom
Cymbals Eat Guitars – “Finally “
I don’t know how they got that guitar to sound like a golden dolphin flying through the sky, but it feels real good. -Zach
JEFF The Brotherhood – “Idiot”
You need to listen to this song while driving down a muddy road in a red convertible with a bunch of beers and big sunglasses. -Tom
Heatmiser – “See You Later”
I had been listening to Elliott Smith’s acoustic version of this song on New Moon for a long time. I’ve always loved this song; it has always been very special to me. I recently found out about this full band version he did with Heatmiser on their last album and now my life is complete. -Andrew
Haybaby – “New Friends”
This song fits well with bopping around random apartments and drinking too much. It’s clumsy but well thought out, and the chorus won’t leave your brain easy. -Tom
Jessica Lea Mayfield – “Blue Skies Again”
This is a Sunday morning song. You wake up, it’s a little rainy and gray at first, but then you decide to get out of bed and get a coffee and a bacon egg and cheese and then the sun starts to peek out from behind the clouds and then you get a text saying you actually don’t have to work tomorrow and you dance in the street all day. -Tom
Lady Wray – “Guilty”
It’s too groovy, the background vocals definitely get your hips moving. -Tom
Dan Deacon – “Feel the Lightning”
This was my senior year of college song. I’ve always had a longing to make electronic trippy pop music and Dan Deacon is one of the best at it. -Tom
Justin Timberlake – “Rock Your Body”
C’mon. Rock your body. -Tom
Real Estate – “Beneath the Dunes”
This is one of my favorite Real Estate songs. We saw Real Estate open up for Girls at Terminal 5 in high school. That was one of the best shows I’ve ever been to, I’ll probably listen to Real Estate forever because of it. -Andrew
Elvis Depressedly – “New Heaven, New Earth”
This song is another world. We played a show with them at a coffee shop on the Fordham campus before this album came out. I had listened to a bunch of their stuff before New Alhambra, but nothing hit me like this song. Damn. -Andrew
Porches – “The Cosmos”
During my sophomore year of college at SUNY New Paltz, my friends and I would go to this bar in town and see Porches play before they blew up. They came at least two or three times that year. This song was the climax of that time in my life. Thank you Porches, you made the soundtrack to my college experience. -Andrew
Rozwell Kid – “Creeped Out”
I love this song for so many reasons, the first of which is that it captures that moment when it’s getting a little too late at night and you can’t believe you’re still awake but you look around at your friends and know it’s OK to freak out once in a while. -Quinn
Animal Collective – “Summertime Clothes”
This is just the ultimate “let’s walk around and be weird” song. When this song starts up, I feel like it’s impossible not to immediately recall being a kid in the summertime. -Quinn
