Although Clem Snide has been around for more than a decade, the band hasn’t generated much buzz other than having their song “Moment in the Sun” featured as the theme song for the NBC show Ed during its second season. Essentially a channel for singer/songwriter Eef Barzelay’s creativity, Clem Snide holds a position not unlike alt country / folk rock bands such as Bright Eyes or Okkervil River. In fact, a comparison between Barzelay and Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst is particularly interesting. Not only have the two folk songsters shared parallel careers (both being the primary creative force in their respective bands, releasing debut albums in 1998 and later on, solo albums), they also occupy a similar place in respect to music style.

To begin with, however, album opener “Me No” bears a more distinct resemblance to Colin Meloy of the Decemberists’ songwriting than Oberst’s. Echoing Meloy’s often dark and violent lyrics, “Me No” could fit comfortably among “Shankhill Butchers” from the Decemberists’ 2006 album The Crane Wife or “The Rake’s Song” from the forthcoming The Hazards of Love. Barzelay sings about having “their bones to comb our hair, so shiny,” and the similarities do not end with the lyrics; the instrumentation of “Me No” features a dark, melancholy acoustic strum accompanied by a steady drum beat that bears a strong resemblance to a stripped down version of the aforementioned “The Rake’s Song.”

The following track, “Born a Man”, shows the first inklings of Bright Eyes. The traditional alt-country guitar and soft drumming is supplemented by a minimalist piano melody to complement Barzelay’s story that references a rural transvestite beauty pageant winner who gets excommunicated from the community. Unfortunately, the opening bass line is nearly the only thing that keeps “Burn This Light” from putting you to sleep. Although the song picks up briefly at the four minute mark, it returns to its original, uninteresting state shortly thereafter.

Despite featuring an interesting background effect, “Hum” is an unspectacular song with otherwise boring instrumentation. Continually rising tension in the middle of the song suddenly dissolves into a hushed outro and potential for an energetic climax is vacuumed away by Barzelay’s soft crooning. Fortunately the band comes to life with “The Endless Endings” later in the album. A fuzzy guitar riff coupled with Barzelay’s ghostly howls brings the song into the realm of psychedelia and gives Hungry Bird a much needed pick-me-up.

Spoken word song “Encounter at 3AM” functions as fresh relief from the constant musical repetition on Hungry Bird. Reminiscent of The Weakerthans’ song “Elegy For Gump Worsley” or the spoken word portion of The Eel’s “Susan’s House,” the song acts as a segue, bridging the two halves of the album nicely. Barzelay’s singing on closing track “With All My Heart” also bears a resemblance to the voice of Weakerthans’ John K. Sampson. Accompanied by a lone acoustic guitar, the potential for an intimate connection is lost when Barzelay delivers a performance regrettably undistinguishable from most other tracks on the album.

While Clem Snide essentially inhabit the same musical genre as Bright Eyes, their music (unlike Bright Eyes) lacks most of the interesting, innovative characteristics of the latter. Furthermore, Barzelay fall shorts in his position as Conor Oberst’s creative doppelganger, failing to write lyrics with any degree of interest or personally affecting content. The emotionally gripping lyrics, spiritual allusions (see: Cassadaga) and brilliantly crafted stanzas that fill Oberst’s poetry are absent from Barzelay’s repertoire and is the primary reason for the stale nature of Hungry Bird. While Clem Snide fail to push any boundaries, Hungry Bird is by no means a bad album, merely one with an excess of potential and incredibly high standards in their genre to live up to.

Track List
1. Me No (3:42)
2. Born a Man (5:53)
3. Hum (5:26)
4. Burn the Light (6:11)
5. Encounter at 3 AM (2:07)
6. The Endless Endings (4:36)
7. Our Time Will Come (3:39)
8. Beard of Bees (3:21)
9. Pray (7:57)
10. With All My Heart (3:24)