An Interview With Tough Old Bird On New Album “Garden Dream”

Right now, folk music is having a major resurgence in the mainstream music world. One indie folk band, Tough Old Bird is looking to make their mark with their latest studio album Garden Dream, set to release April 26. So far they’ve released two singles, “Conjurer” and “Locks.”

Table of Contents

• Idea & Inspiration Behind Garden Dream
• Differences from Previous Projects
• Songwriting Process & Band Dynamics
• Upbringing Influence on Songwriting
• Musical Influences & Folk Music Popularity
• Listener Takeaway from Garden Dream

Idea & Inspiration Behind Garden Dream

Matthew Corrigan: I remember almost conceptualizing this album in 2018, like, quite a surprisingly long time ago. We already had our previous album, The Old Great Lakes recorded and done at that point, then we had a few songs left to the side that kind of felt like we really wanted to hold on to them and go in that direction the next time.

Differences from Previous Projects

Matthew: I would say that songs themselves are definitely more autobiographically leaning than some of our previous stuff, which felt pretty important to me to reach a certain point where I was comfortable with writing more directly about myself rather than necessarily crafting narratives.

Songwriting Process & Band Dynamics

Nathan: We’re now very good at being honest editors for each other. I think the biggest benefit is just having someone who’s open and receptive to ideas.

Upbringing Influence on Songwriting

Matthew: I feel like almost everything that I write about comes from my observable world and life and a ton of that is influenced by where and how we were brought up in a rural environment.

Musical Influences & Folk Music Popularity

Nathan: It seems like that kind of stuff is always there. There’s always people doing it, but it rises and falls in popularity, and you know, it’s placed in the public consciousness.

Listener Takeaway from Garden Dream

Nathan: I hope that people connect with it in some way and find some meaning in it.

Garden Dream is available on Bandcamp for vinyl/CD pre-order and will be streaming wherever you get music on April 26th.

The band will be playing shows in Rochester and Buffalo as well as Glenshaw, PA throughout the month of April and into May. The full tour schedule can be found on their website: here