Words + Photos by Marco Denzer
Impeccably dressed in a black and white plaid suit, Naomi Hamilton led her band, Jealous of the Birds, through a fantastic 45-minute early set at Rockwood Music Hall. Her band mates, dressed equally as sharp, wore tapered plaid pants with suspenders and white shirts with the sleeves rolled up. They looked elegantly casual, but absolutely ready for action.
There was palpable anticipation and excitement in the air, and the audience in the venue was clearly looking forward to the event of the evening. Not unlike a child who waits to open a gift, the people knew something good was about to happen and they couldn’t wait for it to begin.
Jealous of the Birds took the stage at 7:00 PM sharp and wasted no time in getting down to business. Although the set they played was brief, it was far beyond fun and entertaining and it would easily qualify as downright excellent. Naomi’s exquisite voice and charm together with the band’s contagious groove was an irresistible call to dance, they had no problems stirring up the audience and making them bop to their tunes.
The band’s live show offers a rare and refreshing combination of poetic lyrics, sultry acoustic ballads, driving rock tunes with a noticeable strain of rebellious punk, and an undeniable funk beat that is hard to ignore. Their music is very well written and arranged, they have an incredibly tight rhythm section that features some badass bass riffs, and its members clearly draw energy from each other to deliver an outstanding performance.
Naomi Hamilton stated that Jealous of the Birds will definitely return to the U.S. for more shows, so stay tuned for future announcements and tour dates on jealousofthebirdsmusic.com and their social media pages. In the meantime listen to their music on Spotify, YouTube and other popular music platforms.
TheWaster.com | NYC
5.29.19
