Birding

Birding takes wing with mellifluous delicacy and sturdy dynamism, held in fine balance. [Apr 2026, p.105]

Birding doesn’t rewrite the rulebook of dream-pop or invent a new tonal language, and may not be as innovative or groundbreaking as Cocteau Twins or Slowdive records; however, it offers a wealth of familiar joys that captures the classic 4AD shimmer without the experimental opaque-ness, and is just as rewarding a listen as the classics that inspired it.

Birding delivers listeners back to populated, earthbound spaces with the warm piano and wind chimes of its instrumental title track. It makes for an exquisite and fitting debut for the Bella Union label.

For the most part, Birding follows the Cocteau Twins template to a tee, seemingly daring listeners and critics alike to find a better descriptor than the all-too-obvious ‘ethereal’. But deary are smart enough to inject some variety, which they achieve by incorporating heavier, almost explosive passages.

Perhaps what’s most striking about Birding is how cohesive it is for a debut, every swell is intentional and carefully placed without ever feeling clinical. There’s warmth and space while including all the finely crafted minutia needed to give songs genuine depth and the band have resisted the urge to overcomplicate things.