Guillemots frontman Fyfe Dangerfield released his first (and so far, only) solo album Fly Yellow Moon back in 2010, while his band were still in their heyday. It’s easy to forget how big Guillemots were for a while, their debut album Through The Windowpane was nominated for the 2006 Mercury Music Prize (though it was beaten by the Arctic Monkeys’ Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not), and their dreamy hits like Get Over It and Made-Up Love Song #43 resonated within the indie scene at the time.

Curiously though, after their fourth album Hello Land! In 2012, Guillemots more or less disappeared. There’s been no formal announcement from the band themselves, but it seems they’re now no more. Tellingly, their social media channels haven’t been updated since 2015, and they haven’t played together live since 2012. They’ve just… gone.

So a new EP from Dangerfield might come as a surprise to some, but he’s been busy since 2018 working on his Birdwatcher project, a series of broadcasts, music and stories gathered together on his Channels May Change website. This new release collects some of the highlights from the website, and builds on ideas and music he has developed there. The whole six-track EP is available to download or stream for free from the website, with notes, formatted as little menus, on each concoction.

The EP opens with Woah! Life, a hazy, freeform smattering of piano and sound effects revolving around Dangerfield’s gentle vocals, while the title track makes delightful use of some tight harmonies and builds to a dizzying finale. One Truth Remains and The Sea House are odd little interludes that break up the EP, while the ten-minute-plus Lochinver travels from an flamenco-esque guitar opening into a delightfully jazzy, brass-laden affair and is probably the standout piece here. The synth-y Lying There closes things in soaring fashion.

The Birdwatcher is an interesting and eclectic little collection then, and one that’ll appeal to fans of Guillemots wondering where the group went. 

The Birdwatcher tracklist:

1. Woah! Life
2. One Truth Remains
3. Birdwatcher
4. The Sea House
5. Lochinver
6. Lying There

Watch the official video for Woah! Life here.

Author: Joe Sharratt

Joe Sharratt is a writer and journalist based in the UK covering music, literature, sport, and travel.