Babybird - The Pleasures Of Self Destruction

Stephen Jones, aka Babybird, is one of UK pop’s survivors. Incredibly ‘The Pleasures Of Self Destruction’ is Jones’ seventh album under the moniker, and despite his dearth of commercial success since the chart storming days of the mid-nineties, and the ubiquitous ‘You’re Gorgeous’, Babybird has consistently made challenging and wonderfully melodic guitar pop.

‘The Pleasures Of Self Destruction’ is yet another accomplished album. Jones has long been one of the UK’s most underrated songwriters and his gift for a memorable melody and witty wordplay is again very evident here - songs like the beautifully understated ‘The Best Days Of Our Lives’ are filled with imagery and lyrical couplets. It seems he’s full of the joys of love; it is all very life-affirming stuff.

Love, relationships and embracing life are a theme throughout, although in that typical Babybird fashion there is always a cynical twist to be heard - for example, in the subversive love song ‘Not Love’ Jones croons: ‘This is not a love song .. We just want something that’s ours.’ Another piece of clever song writing and observation is the darkly menacing tale of an internet stalker in ‘www.song.’

While Babybird is at his finest delivering soft and tender love songs, the album sadly rather misfires when it comes to the more up-tempo material. The opening track ‘Jesus Night Club’, despite some fantasticly surreal lyrics, is a rather lumpen piece of serviceable Britpop; ‘I’m Not A Killer’ is stymied by a horrible electro dance influence and some sadly dated synthetic horns. These weaker tracks, however, do not detract too much from what is otherwise an impressive collection.

Babybird will probably never again reach the upper echelons of the chart, or even the chart itself, but if anyone fondly remembers ‘You’re Gorgeous’ and wonders whatever happened to that guy - give this album a listen, you may be pleasantly surprised.