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Few bands can say they were born out of necessity, but Slaughter Beach, Dog can. In 2015, Jake Ewald, in the midst of trying to write songs for his other band Modern Baseball (which has since gone on hiatus), hit a patch of writer's block. To get himself back in action, Ewald decided to move the focus off of himself, stitching together a loose narrative surrounding a motley cast of characters. Before he knew it, he'd written an entire album, and Slaughter Beach, Dog was no longer an exercise, it was a full-fledged band.InchWhen I gave myself the specific goal to write these kinds of songs and figure out how to do it, it just broke me open in a way I really needed.Inch What came pouring out of Ewald was Welcome, a 10-track debut that showed his ability to create a world of his own making, all the while blurring the line between fiction and reality. At times, he'd be singing about people and situations he invented, but the songs were still personal, often informed by experiences deep in his past, excavated for the purpose of expanding his songwriting vocabulary.Slaughter Beach, Dog's new album Birdie (October 27 on Lame-O Records) expands upon the framework Ewald built on Welcome and the recent EP Motorcycle.jpg, retaining the hallmarks of Slaughter Beach, Dog while pushing into brave new territories A single listen to Birdie shows how much Ewald has grown as a songwriter, embellishing every detail in his songs without losing his homespun charms.Where Welcome felt based in rock's grand tradition, Birdie is at once more expansive and more intimate. Songs ebb and flow in the way of The Weakerthans, still rocking, but in a more scholarly way. InchI took [Motorcycle.jpg] as an opportunity to get a little bit weirder than usual,Inch said Ewald, and it's clear that the EP was a signpost for where he'd be taking Slaughter Beach, Dog on Birdie. InchGold And GreenInch sees Ewald
