As someone who didn’t grow up here, it can be hard to put into words the kind of city Atlanta is. This major metropolis of the South possesses a pure effervescence against the more timid backdrop of suburbia that makes it such an anomaly. Atlanta-based band, Neighbor Lady, embraces this dichotomy of their hometown—even if they don’t intentionally mean to.
“I guess we don’t set out to have a specific sound—it just kind of turns out that way,” says Emily Braden, the lead singer and songwriter of the group. “I think just being in the South and growing up with Southern music and being in Athens and playing rock music just kind of comes out like that.”
Formed in 2015, Neighbor Lady has enchanted listeners with energetic sonics paired with extremely vulnerable lyrics unique to Braden. What initially started as a solo project eventually morphed into a quartet now comprised of guitarist Jack Blauvelt, bassist Payton Collier, and drummer Andrew McFarland. Neighbor Lady takes their experimental indie-folk sound to new heights on their sophomore record, For the Birds.
Debuted on July 1, the cover of the band’s sophomore release immediately draws you in with a vibrant yellow background scattered with tchotchkes. It’s reminiscent of a throwback iSpy book—but there’s a greater meaning behind it.
“We all got childhood knickknacks and stuff and just put them down and took a photo of it,” McFarland says. “So, everything on there means something to each member.”
The artwork perfectly encapsulates the intimacy and whimsy expressed throughout the record. Heavily inspired by seventies pop, For the Birds takes a more psychedelic approach to Neighbor Lady’s self-described “country-kissed indie rock.”
“Sonically [we were] trying to focus on the seventies feel,” McFarland explains. “We definitely used Fleetwood Mac as a reference a lot. Sort of like that golden era, like, Rumors/Tusk era.”
“Going into it, we were all obsessed with Andy Shauf’s record, The Party,” Blauvelt adds.
“I’ve been such a huge fan of Scott Walker and the Walker brothers and just, like, sixies pop as a whole. So, I feel like that is definitely reflective of kind of that baroque element,” says Collier.
Credit: Sidney Rouse
The 10-track release brings sight to love and loss through the band’s kaleidoscopic perspective. Four years after their first LP Maybe Later dropped, the band teased listeners with their first single off FTB, titled “Haunting.” The eerie nature of the single initially came as a surprise from Neighbor Lady, diverting from their typical upbeat tempos. But once you listen closer, Braden’s emotive resonance cuts through and reminds you who exactly you’re listening to. Despite all its multi-genre influences, this raw and vulnerable retrospection remains a constant within the record. Songs like “Takin’ U 4 A Ride” and “Felt” lean into the group’s country-western motifs, while “Feel It All the Time” is a darker, much more ambient release from the group.
“I remember when I joined the band in 2019, Jack showed me the demo for ‘Feel It All the Time,’ which is definitely kind of the most sonically different of anything Neighbor Lady has done,” Collier recalls.
For the Birds was recorded at Atlanta’s Diamond Street Studios with the help of engineer Jason Kingsland and assistance from Zack Pyles. Mixing was done by Noah Georgeson. Recorded before and during the pandemic, the band’s patience and resilience through delays showed true meaning to the phrase, “trust the process.”
“The entire timeframe of recording and getting it out was all kind of up in the air,” McFarland explains. “We really went to town. We all have recording capabilities and we have this amazing sound bounce at our house that we ended up re-recording. A lot of the guitar, all the vocals on us, and a lot of sort the baroque pop elements of came to be after the fact.”
Despite being faced with delays beyond their control, Neighbor Lady’s rock-solid communication and collaborative spirit proved to prevail even in near-apocalyptic times. McFarland attributes this to their success as a group.
“At this point, it’s hard to find people that can sort of function in the way that this band is able to function, where it’s just like we will just try an idea just to try it. There’s very little ego in the arrangement and writing processes… that’s something that’s really special about this band and this group of people.”
“I mean, I really just write the beginning structure and the lyrics, and then as we work on it as a group, it takes on a whole new life,” Braden adds.
While Neighbor Lady’s unique country twang and indie-pop elements prove to be distinguishable, it’s their flamboyant sound paired with raw lyricism on For the Birds that makes them a band to remember.
Neighbor Lady will celebrate the release of For the Birds tonight at the EARL alongside Bathe Alone and Night Palace. Doors open at 8 p.m. Admission is $18. 21+ to enter.
More Info
Bandcamp: neighborlady.bandcamp.com
Facebook: @neighborladymusic
Instagram: @neighbor_lady