Birds of Tokyo

Birds of Tokyo
Birds of Tokyo performing at Mount Smart Stadium in Auckland for the Big Day Out 2011
Background information
Origin	Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Genres	Alternative rock
Years active	2004–present
Labels	EMI
Associated acts	Karnivool, Sons of Rico
Website	Official website
Members	Ian Kenny Adam Spark Adam Weston Glenn Sarangapany Ian Berney
Past members	Anthony Jackson

Birds of Tokyo is a five-piece alternative rock band from Perth, Western Australia. Their debut album Day One, gained them domestic success, reaching number three on the AIR Independent Album charts and spending a total of 36 consecutive weeks in the top ten.

In 2008, the band released Universes, which made it to number three on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart. 2010 saw the band's self-titled third studio release Birds of Tokyo spend over eight months on the Australian top 20, peaking at number two on the ARIA Albums Chart. The double platinum album received the 2010 ARIA Award for Best Rock Album and in early 2011 the band's breakthrough hit Plans ranked number four on Triple J's Hottest 100. The album's follow-up single, Wild at Heart, reached number one on the country's national airplay chart and won the band an APRA Award.

In 2013 the band released their fourth studio album March Fires. Supported by the album's first two singles This Fire and Lanterns, March Fires debuted at number one on the ARIA Albums Chart—the band's first ever number one record. The album was certified gold within four weeks of release and the triple platinum single Lanterns was the most played song on Australian radio for the first six months of 2013.

The band released their fifth studio album Brace in November 2016.

History

Birds of Tokyo vocalist Ian Kenny performing at the Fly by Night Club in 2008

Early years

Birds of Tokyo formed in 2004 from a collaboration between members of another Perth act Tragic Delicate and Karnivool, from which Ian Kenny came.

The band formed when guitarist Adam Spark asked Kenny to sing on some demos intended to be sold for publication rights. The results were so good, they decided to form a band and release the songs themselves. They took their name from an article one member had read about the absence of birds in Tokyo's high-density CBD due to pollution and overcrowding. "We thought that was interesting, no birds in Tokyo — we thought, we'll be the birds of Tokyo", he says.^[1]

In January 2005, Birds of Tokyo released their debut EP, Birds of Tokyo. In October 2005, Birds of Tokyo released a double A side single "One Way/Stay". It was recorded in Melbourne with acclaimed producer Forrester Savell (Helmet, Full Scale, Karnivool).

Day One (2006–2007)

2006 saw the band touring regional WA on a three-week tour in January, before returning to Melbourne to finish working on their debut album, Day One. The album was released on 3 February 2007 and debuted at No. 88 on the ARIA Albums Chart and No. 3 on the AIR albums chart.

Directly following the release, the band embarked on extensive touring, starting with their "Day One" tour, playing in five capital cities around Australia. Birds of Tokyo also performed at the Perth leg of the 2007 Big Day Out and the at Blackjack 2007 (the relocated Rock-It festival).

Birds of Tokyo were nominated for two awards in the 2007 AIR Awards (Australian Independent Record Association) for Best Performing Independent Album^[2] and Most Outstanding New Independent Artist.^[3] "Wayside" was voted in at No. 61 in Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2007.^[4]

They were also recognized in Rolling Stone magazine as 'Artists to Watch' in 2007.^[5]

Universes (2008–2009)

The band recorded their second album Universes in Margaret River, Western Australia, which was mixed in Los Angeles by Tim Palmer (Pearl Jam, Porcupine Tree). The debut single from the album, "Silhouettic", was released as a free download on 14 April 2008. The album was released 5 July 2008 and debuted at No. 3 on the ARIA Albums Chart^[6] and at No. 1 on the AIR albums chart.^[7] The album reached gold status in Australia in January 2009.

The band played all Australian shows at the Big Day Out in 2009. "Broken Bones", "Silhouettic" and "Wild Eyed Boy" were voted in at No. 20, No. 22 and No. 51 respectively in the Hottest 100 of 2008.^[8]

In late 2009 the band embarked on the Broken Strings tour, which featured acoustic interpretations of a selection of their work to date, accompanied by a string quartet and grand piano arranged by producer Anthony Cormican. The supporting artist was Glenn Richards (lead singer of Augie March). A CD and DVD featuring recordings from the tour was available to preorder at the shows, and was released in early 2010 as The Broken Strings Tour. Birds of Tokyo were nominated for the 2009 Channel V Oz Artist of the Year.

Birds of Tokyo (2010–2011)

In early 2010 the band returned to the studio to work on their self-titled third album. In March 2010 the band released the single "The Saddest Thing I Know" and announced an Australian tour by the same name. They are touring with the New Zealand-based band Midnight Youth. The second single "Plans" was premiered on Sunday 20 June. The album was released on 23 July 2010. They toured with Silversun Pickups in September and October 2010. Birds of Tokyo received six 2010 ARIA Music Awards nominations.^[9] "Wild at Heart" was the album's third single. "Plans" was voted at No. 4 in the Hottest 100 of 2010, while "Wild at Heart" and "The Saddest Thing I Know" also appeared at No. 47 and No. 87, respectively. The band also played at the Big Day Out in 2011 for their third time.

In March 2011 the band announced via their Facebook page that bass player Anthony Jackson was leaving the band. Ian Berney from Sugar Army later filled the position.^[10][11]

In April 2011 they played alongside Art vs Science, The Jezabels and local Joshy Willo at the Triple J One Night Stand at Tumby Bay, South Australia.

The band were nominated in five different categories at the 2011 West Australian Music Industry Awards (WAMi), including Most Popular Act, Most Popular Album, Best Male Vocalist, Best Instrumentalist and Best Bassist.^[12] The band won for Most Popular Album and Best Instrumentalist.

In late April/early May 2011, Birds of Tokyo played at the annual Groovin' the Moo music festival alongside other Australian artists like Gotye, Washington, Art vs Science and Architecture in Helsinki.^[13]

The band toured through September and October 2011, their final national tour for the year. The tour was called the Closer Tour due to the fact that they opted to play smaller venues than they had played prior.

During an interview on Radar, Adam revealed that the band would be heading back in to the studio to record their new album over the summer.^[14]

March Fires (2012–2014)

On 1 February 2012, the band announced that they had finished writing their new album and would start recording the week after.^[15] Creating the new album was a journey of "exploration and reinvention" for Birds of Tokyo, telling the story of burning down the old and coming together to build something new. In October 2012, the band released an EP titled This Fire, which featured two songs ("This Fire" and "Boy") from the album. On 14 January 2013, "Lanterns" was released as a single, with its video coming out on 8 February. After being available for preorder on iTunes for 3 months, March Fires was released on 1 March 2013.

Led by the first two singles, March Fires debuted at No. 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart, making it the band's first No. 1 record. The album was certified gold within four weeks of release and the triple platinum single "Lanterns" was the most played song on Australia radio in the first six months of 2013. "When the Night Falls Quiet" was later released as a single, with its video coming out on 22 April.

Birds of Tokyo completed a sell-out tour of Australia to accompany the release and received positive reviews for shows across their March Fires album tour. They also performed at the 2013 AFL Grand Final, Splendour in the Grass 2013 and were announced as the sole support for Muse on their national Australian tour across November and December.

Playlist (2015–present)

On 24 April 2015, the group released their third EP, Anchor. The EP was supported by a national tour and the release of a single of the same name. The music video for that song was released the following month. Birds of Tokyo subsequently debuted a new song, "I'd Go with You Anywhere", confirming the release of a compilation album, Playlist, which was released in November 2015 and peaked at number 4.

Members

Current members

• Ian Kenny – vocals (2004–present)
• Adam Spark – guitars, vocals, keyboards (2004–present)
• Adam Weston – drums, percussion (2004–present)
• Glenn Sarangapany – keyboards, synthesisers, vocals (2011–present)
• Ian Berney – bass (2011–present)

Past members

• Anthony Jackson – bass (2004–2011)

Discography

Birds of Tokyo discography
Studio albums	4
Live albums	1
Compilation albums	1
Video albums	1
EPs	3
Singles	18

Studio albums

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions AUS [16]	Certifications (sales thresholds)
2007	Day One Released: 2 February 2007 Label: Egg Records/MGM Distribution Format: CD, digital download	88
2008	Universes Released: 8 July 2008 Label: Independent/MGM Distribution Format: CD, digital download	3	ARIA: Gold[17]
2010	Birds of Tokyo Released: 23 July 2010 Label: EMI Format: CD, LP, digital download	2	ARIA: Platinum[18][19]
2013	March Fires Released: 1 March 2013 Label: EMI Format: CD, digital download	1	ARIA: Gold
2016	Brace Released: 4 November 2016 Label: EMI Format: CD, digital download	3

Live albums

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions AUS [16]
2010	The Broken Strings Tour Released: 5 February 2010 Label: Independent/MGM Format: CD, digital download	11

Compilation albums

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions AUS [16]
2015	Playlist Released: 6 November 2015 Label: Birds of Tokyo, EMI Music Australia Format: CD, digital download	4

EPs

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions AUS [16]	Certifications (sales thresholds)
2005	Birds of Tokyo Released: January 2005 Label: Egg Records (Independent) Format: CD	—
2012	This Fire Released: October 2012 Label: EMI Format: CD, 10" vinyl, digital download	32	ARIA: Gold[20]
2015	Anchor Released: 24 April 2015 Label: EMI Format: CD, digital download	23	ARIA: Platinum[21]

Singles

Year	Title	Peak chart positions			Year-end positions		Certifications[22]	Album
		AUS [16]	AUS Artists [23]	NZ [24]	Triple J Hottest 100[25]	ARIA Singles Chart [26]
2005	"One Way/Stay"	—	—	—	—	—		Non-album single
2006	"Off Kilter"	—	—	—	—	—		Day One
2007	"Black Sheets"	—	—	—	—	—
	"Wayside"	—	—	—	61	—
2008	"Silhouettic"	—	—	—	22	—		Universes
	"Broken Bones"	—	—	—	20	—
	"Wild Eyed Boy"	—	—	—	51	—
	"White Witch"	—	—	—	155	—
2009	"Head in My Hands"	—	—	—	—	—
2010	"The Saddest Thing I Know"	64	14	—	87	—		Birds of Tokyo
	"Plans"	11	1	32	4	47	AUS: 3× Platinum
	"Wild at Heart"	50	4	—	47	—	AUS: Gold
2011	"Circles"	—	—	—	162	—
2012	"This Fire"	[upper-alpha 1]	—	—	51	—		This Fire (EP) and March Fires
2013	"Lanterns"	3	1	—	22	25	AUS: 3× Platinum	March Fires
	"When the Night Falls Quiet"	43	8	—	—	—
2015	"Anchor"	[upper-alpha 2]	—	—	72	—		Anchor (EP)
	"I'd Go with You Anywhere"	18	5	—	146	—	AUS: Gold[27]	Playlist
2016	"Brace"	—	17	—	—	—		Brace
	"Empire"	—	—	—	—	—

1. Sales of "This Fire" counted towards the EP This Fire
2. Sales of "Anchor" counted towards the EP Anchor

DVDs

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions AUS
2010	The Broken Strings Tour Released: 5 February 2010 Label: MGM Format: DVD	3

Awards and nominations

APRA Awards

The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), "honouring composers and songwriters".^[28]

Year	Nominee/work	Award	Result
2011	"Plans" (Anthony Jackson, Ian Kenny, Adam Spark, Adam Weston)	Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year[29]	Nominated
		Most Played Australian Work[30]	Nominated
		Rock Work of the Year[31]	Nominated
		Song of the Year[32]	Nominated
2012	"Wild at Heart" (Anthony Jackson, Ian Kenny, Adam Spark, Adam Weston)	Rock Work of the Year[33]	Won
		Most Played Australian Work[34]	Nominated
2014	"Lanterns" (Ian Berney, Ian Kenny, Glenn Sarangapany, Adam Spark, Adam Weston)	Most Played Australian Work[35]	Won
		Rock Work of the Year[36]	Won
		Song of the Year[37]	Nominated
	"When the Night Falls Quiet" (Ian Berney, Ian Kenny, Glen Sarangapany, Adam Spark, Adam Weston)	Rock Work of the Year[36]	Nominated

Other awards

Year	Type	Award	Result
2005	WAMi Award	Rock Song of the Year – "Stay"	Won
2007	WAMi Award	Favourite Newcomer	Won
		Best Male Vocalist – Ian Kenny	Won
2008	WAMi Award	Most Popular Album – Day One[38]	Won
		2008 WAMi Award – Best Rock Act[38]	Won
		Best Guitarist – Adam Spark[38]	Nominated
		Best Male Vocalist – Ian Kenny[38]	Nominated
		Best Drummer – Adam Weston[38]	Nominated
		Best Instrumentalist – Glenn Sarangapany[38]	Nominated
	AIR Awards	Best Rock Act	Nominated
		Best Independent Artist	Nominated
	J Award	Best Album - Universes	Nominated
2009	WAMi Award	Most Popular Act[39]	Won
		Most Popular Album - Universes[39]	Won
		Most Popular Live Act[39]	Won
		Best Male Vocalist - Ian Kenny[39]	Won
		Best Rock Act[39]	Won
2010	ARIA Music Awards	"Best Rock Album" - Birds Of Tokyo[9]	Won
		"Album of the Year" - Birds Of Tokyo[9]	Nominated
		"Single of the Year" - "Plans"[9]	Nominated
		"Best Group"[9]	Nominated
		"Best Music DVD" - The Broken Strings Tour DVD[9]	Nominated
		"Most Popular Australian Artist"[9]	Nominated

References

1. "Birds of Tokyo Interview". Apollo Magazine. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
2. "Best Performing Independent Album (2007 nominees)". AIR. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
3. "Most Outstanding New Independent Artist (2007 nominees)". AIR. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
4. "hottest 100 2007". Triple J. Retrieved 16 July 2009.
5. Hanna, Jay (12 May 2007). "Driven to succeed". PerthNow.com. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
6. "Universes - Birds of Tokyo". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
7. "AIR Charts". Australian Music Office. Retrieved 2008-08-11.
8. McCabe, Kathy (26 January 2009). "Kings of Leon win Triple J Hottest 100 with Sex on Fire". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 16 July 2009.
9. 2010 ARIA Nominations Announced Archived 2 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Take40 Australia (mcm entertainment). Retrieved 2010-09-29.
10. "Birds of Tokyo bassist flies the coop". Triple J. 21 March 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2011.
11. Smith, Barnaby (21 March 2011). "Birds of Tokyo split with bassist". Music Feeds. Retrieved 23 March 2011.
12. Cook, Morgan (15 April 2011). "Birds of Tokyo nominated at WAMi". Valleyarm. Retrieved 2011-04-19.
13. "Birds of Tokyo & Gotye to play Groovin' The Moo". Valleyarm. 4 April 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-19.
14. Radar Radio Interview Archived 21 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
15. "Birds Of Tokyo Finished Writing". Facebook. 1 February 2012. Retrieved 2012-02-01.
16. "australian-charts.com - Discography Birds of Tokyo". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
17. ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2009 Albums Archived 12 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 2010-09-30.
18. ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2010 Albums Archived 25 January 2012 at WebCite Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 2010-09-30.
19. BOT GO PLATINUM - WATCH NEW VID HERE Access All Areas.net.au. Retrieved 2010-11-16.
20. "ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2013 Singles". www.aria.com.au. Archived from the original on 4 February 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
21. "ARIA Australian Top 50 Singles Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. 29 June 2015. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
22. ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2010 Albums Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 2010-09-30.
23. //www.ariacharts.com.au/pages/charts_home.htm
24. "Discography Birds Of Tokyo". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-09-11.
25. "Hottest 100 - 2010 | triple j". Abc.net.au. 2011-03-04. Retrieved 2012-03-23.
26. "ARIA Top 100 Singles 2010". Aria.com.au. Archived from the original on 5 December 2010. Retrieved 2012-03-23.
27. Ryan, Gavin (28 November 2015). "ARIA Singles: 'Hello' Is No 1 Again". Noise11. Retrieved 28 November 2015.
28. "APRA History". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). Archived from the original on 20 September 2010. Retrieved 17 January 2011.
29. "Nominations > Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year – 2011". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
30. "Nominations > Most Played Australian Work – 2011". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2011. Archived from the original on 16 October 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
31. "Nominations > Rock Work of the Year – 2011". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2011. Archived from the original on 16 October 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
32. "Nominations > Song of the Year – 2011". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2011. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
33. "Winners for the 2012 APRA Music Awards Announced". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 19 June 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
34. "Nominations > Most Played Australian Work – 2012". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2012. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
35. "Most Played Australian Work". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
36. "Rock Work of the Year". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
37. "Song of the Year". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
38. "Perth Music » Blog Archive » 2008 WAMi Award Winners". Perthmusic.norg.com.au. 2008-02-23. Retrieved 2012-03-23.
39. 2009 WAMi Awards Retrieved 2010-09-29.

External links

• Birds of Tokyo website