Adam Shoenfeld — All the Birds Sing - Review

Multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and songwriter Adam Shoenfeld’s first solo project is an adventurous musical journey with nods to various influences along the way. Playing most of the instruments, writing all of the songs but one, and coproducing in collaboration with his wife, Katie Cook, who also cowrote two of the songs, All the Birds Sing is Shoenfeld’s modern take on classic rock, and the end result is very satisfying on many levels.

“The Sky is Falling” sets the tone immediately with Jonathan Yudkin’s dramatic swirling flanged violins building into a multi-layered sonic tapestry with a dramatic lyric that lives up to its title. Shawn Fichter’s thundering drums and Shoenfeld’s melodic guitars dance with Yudkin’s layered strings and a variety of effects coming and going in the mix. “Gettin’ To Me” features a wall of squawking guitars and heavy power chords behind an insistent vocal, underpinned by the rock solid rhythm section of Brad Pemberton on drums and Steve Mackey on bass.

The title track is a Tom Petty-like acoustic guitar-driven ode to an irresistible force of nature, with Shoenfeld’s yearning vocals, bass, drums, and multiple guitars perfectly augmented by Billy Nobel’s retro keyboard sounds. “11,” written with Cook and Deano Brown, takes the classic Spinal Tap joke to a whole new level as a rocking love song. Shoenfeld’s crunchy guitars, keyboard strings and layered vocals give an “ELO meets Foo Fighters” vibe, along with Fichter’s drums and a host of clever post-production effects. “Son” is a tender ode to the complexity of fatherhood, with a chugging, insistent, feel supported by Jeff Marino’s drums. Shoenfeld’s melodic electric slide guitar lines are sweetly reminiscent of George Harrison and Lowell George.

Several songs, such as “Lose to Win,” cowritten with March Martin and Stan Karcz, “Pave Those Highways,” and “Her Song,” find Shoenfeld playing and singing every note, and he deftly avoids the pitfall of sounding one dimensional. He plays each instrument as if he is a different musician — not an easy thing to do. The loose but tight backing vocals achieve that same perfect imperfection. He reaches a peak in a one-man-band approach, with his take on the Beatles classic “Norwegian Wood.” Rather than emulate the original arrangement, he makes it his own, by rocking it up with dramatic percussion and slide guitar. “Say A Word” elegantly closes the record with a brief but emotive life lesson and message of encouragement, with Mike Rojas’ electric piano and accordion deftly supporting Shoenfeld’s acoustic guitar and sincere vocal. This is a great debut from one of Nashville’s finest backup musicians, who is finally stepping into the spotlight on his own. — Roy Montana