Hurtbird to release album

Hurtbird releases their new album, Nature Vs. City, nationally on October 12th

Having shared stages with Themselves, Menomena, Why?, Anti-Pop Consortium, Buck 65, Subtle, Talkdemonic and Astronautalis, it's safe to say Hurtbird has parked their inner tube in the experimental end of the musical pool. At live shows, you'll notice a select few in the back of the room feverishly scratching their heads attempting to classify their genre while the remaining few hundred are dancing, shouting and enjoying the hell out of the live set. It's not quite like anything you've heard before... not that the band sounds alien or from another planet. In fact, when you describe frontman, Ryan Hayes, as a person you might more easily capture the basis of their sound.

Hayes, a quiet man and poet by training, spends his days divided between the city and country working as a carpenter that specializes in crafting beautiful items from discarded wood. When he takes the stage though, he's a beast of a man transformed; delivering his verses with a gruff, lyrical prowess on par with any MC in the biz.

Backed with a warm, live band their sound is energetically flushed out with swelling, golden-voiced choruses (courtesy of Hurtbird's second voice, Mike Man), bass heavy drum beats, samples, crackling guitars and atmospheric keyboards. Always energetic on stage, one of the more commonly heard comments after shows is "I love it when the big man dances!"

Taking their name from the old poem The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner about the first word uttered after an albatross was shot with the arrow, Hurtbird's newest record piles flowing vocals atop an organic tapestry of weirdness. On Nature Vs. City, songs like "Dune" and "Weave A Web" capture the essence of the album's title. Those two, along with parts of many others, contrast the organic with the futuristic in a way that is the heart and blood of the Hurtbird sound. "I Like My Bike" will easily become a two-wheel anthem for bike enthusiasts round the world with it's ode to cycling.

The album's sound culminates with the final track, "Dear Wooden One". The song starts with a mellow organ line, the click of drumsticks against one another and Haye's soft spoken word.

Gradually, the song turns on it's ear and takes on a frantic tone layered with crackling electronics and a massive chorus before outro-ing back to Hayes voice letting the listener know that "dear wooden one, you are the one and only."

Nature Vs. City represents a true love for the creative process. Discarding the rules and following true freedom in music, the band casually borrows at will from the sacred grounds of hip hop, folk, post-rock and more. On October 12th, Hurtbird's truly post-genre album is available to the world at large.