Album Review

Rod Jones and The Birthday Suit – A Nation

• 15th Mar 2012

Guitarist and songwriter Rod Jones of Idlewild formed The Birthday Suit as a side project with a selection of friends and Scottish musicians. The band released an album, The Eleventh Hour, last year, on 11/11/11 appropriately enough. New single A Nation comes from that album and a damned fine song it is too.

A Nation is an uptempo slice of Scottish folk rock, starting with an intro of ringing guitars and crashing drums before the first verse starts and the vocals cut through the mix. Jones’ voice is calm and even as he tells of a love lost. And the tempo rises once more for the chorus, which is simple yet anthemic. The track ends with a very nice guitar solo from Jones.

This track will clearly appeal to Idlewild fans, being reminiscent of some of the band’s early releases. Yet it is also fresh and modern sounding, taking a simple structure and creating a powerful track that has a folk edge to it.

Jones’ many fans might just be hoping that Idlewild don’t get together again too soon.