Back in the day, if you were to walk around downtown, you’d hear one predominant sound spilling out of at least every other 6th Street venue: blues rock. But as the landscape of the “Live Music Capital of the World” has evolved and diversified, frankly, so has the state of blues rock itself. And if we’re talking local aural ornithology, there’s a fine specimen that just chirped out something bold.

And that’s Wild Wren. Having only released their debut LP Love Deluge in March 2022, this quartet is still in their fledgling phase, no doubt. But through that nine-tune torrent, Wild Wren’s proven that they’re not just pigeonholed to the the traditional twelve-bar bore. Instead, those straight up jams soar across hard alternative textures and indie-inspired licks, essentially capturing a piece from that turn-of-the-millennium commercial radio backdrop and making it their own in a contemporary context.

And if there’s any producer here in Austin that understands the harder side of that indie-alternative spectrum, it’s Chris “Frenchie” Smith, whose ever-growing brag sheet includes work with Jet and The Darkness. Wild Wren recently linked up with Frenchie for their latest single, and surprise to know one, the result finds the four-piece’s already-fuzzy style fluttering to new, expertly-engineered heights. At a feather under four-and-a-half minutes, “I’M A BIRD” instantly reminds us of a time when acts like Audioslave and Foo Fighters dominated the airwaves, with slower and soulful blues-infused chord changes defining the verses while heavily-melodic motivation overtakes the hooks, including a masterful dynamic range reset midway through.

Ready to get on the wing with Wild Wren? Catch ’em live WTF Icehouse 8PM next Wednesday and again in a few weeks, 10:45PM on Friday, June 7th at Saxon Pub, ’cause those shows definitely aren’t just for the birds.

The post Wild Wren: “I’M A BIRD” appeared first on KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts.