With his first new record under the moniker since putting it on hold after 2014’s Cosmos, Alex Schaaf is back with Yellow Ostrich’s fifth LP at the end of the month—his second YO project of the year, if you consider the repackaged deluxe edition of the decade-old The Mistress released back in March, which includes an album’s worth of covers of popular indie rock tunes from the period in which the record was released. Thus far, Soft takes us back to that period of The National and Beach House’s come-ups, serving up soft-rock tunes that at times feel rooted in that scene, at other moments timeless.
“Birds” is the latest sample of the new record, injecting subtle hints of slide-guitar twang and R&B croon into an audio capsule of amatory epiphany. “’Birds’ is about realizing that desire can be fluid and that it doesn’t follow strict rules and patterns the way you might expect it to,” Schaaf shares. “And generally it’s about continuing to learn more about yourself and others as you get older, that it’s not a process that stops when you reach a certain age.”
Hear the track below.
