Biography
Jealous of the Birds functions as the solo outlet for Irish singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Naomi Hamilton, whose introspective indie rock conveys bright melancholy while inviting comparisons to distinctive songwriters including Cat Power, Karen Dalton, and Laura Marling. Her compositions remain tuneful and folk-inflected, shifting between spare acoustic settings and denser electric arrangements to frame literate, inward-looking lyrics. The atmospheric and poetic approach, grounded in hazy early-1990s alternative rock, first surfaced on 2016's Parma Violets, grew more focused on 2020's Peninsula, and attained balanced maturity on 2023's Hinterland.
Originating from Portadown in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, Hamilton surfaced locally with fellow alternative indie-rock and folk artists such as No Oil Paintings and Ciaran Lavery. Her lo-fi, lush sound drew notice after the March 2015 release of debut EP Capricorn, which earned broad critical praise and led to appearances on BBC Radio Ulster's Across the Line as well as airplay and commendation from BBC Radio One's Huw Stephens. The EP alone cultivated an expanding audience and prompted comparisons to Girlpool, the Moldy Peaches, and Karen Dalton.
She proceeded to write and record her first full-length, Parma Violets, issued in May 2016 on Big Space Records. The album broadened the sonic range beyond Capricorn, transforming many stripped-down acoustic pieces into layered indie-rock statements. To promote it she assembled a live band for tours of the new songs and prior material, including a stateside debut at SXSW in Austin and multiple West Coast dates, which attracted the attention of Canvasback Music/Atlantic Records and resulted in a signing in early 2017. Her first release on the label, the July 2018 EP The Moths of What I Want Will Eat Me in My Sleep, was followed by the early-2019 EP Wisdom Teeth and the September 2020 arrival of second album Peninsula.
With touring halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Hamilton occupied herself during lockdown by writing poetry and pursuing photography, eventually combining the two pursuits in the chapbook Heat of the Sun, which presented forty original poems alongside examples of her nature photography. Influenced by Walt Whitman's work, she returned to the studio with producer and engineer Declan Legge plus guitarist Ciaran Coyle, keyboard player Matt Evans, bassist Peter Close, and drummer Jamie Hewitt. The April 2023 tracks "Morse Code" and "Beginner's Luck" previewed the third Jealous of the Birds album, Hinterland, released in May 2023.
Originating from Portadown in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, Hamilton surfaced locally with fellow alternative indie-rock and folk artists such as No Oil Paintings and Ciaran Lavery. Her lo-fi, lush sound drew notice after the March 2015 release of debut EP Capricorn, which earned broad critical praise and led to appearances on BBC Radio Ulster's Across the Line as well as airplay and commendation from BBC Radio One's Huw Stephens. The EP alone cultivated an expanding audience and prompted comparisons to Girlpool, the Moldy Peaches, and Karen Dalton.
She proceeded to write and record her first full-length, Parma Violets, issued in May 2016 on Big Space Records. The album broadened the sonic range beyond Capricorn, transforming many stripped-down acoustic pieces into layered indie-rock statements. To promote it she assembled a live band for tours of the new songs and prior material, including a stateside debut at SXSW in Austin and multiple West Coast dates, which attracted the attention of Canvasback Music/Atlantic Records and resulted in a signing in early 2017. Her first release on the label, the July 2018 EP The Moths of What I Want Will Eat Me in My Sleep, was followed by the early-2019 EP Wisdom Teeth and the September 2020 arrival of second album Peninsula.
With touring halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Hamilton occupied herself during lockdown by writing poetry and pursuing photography, eventually combining the two pursuits in the chapbook Heat of the Sun, which presented forty original poems alongside examples of her nature photography. Influenced by Walt Whitman's work, she returned to the studio with producer and engineer Declan Legge plus guitarist Ciaran Coyle, keyboard player Matt Evans, bassist Peter Close, and drummer Jamie Hewitt. The April 2023 tracks "Morse Code" and "Beginner's Luck" previewed the third Jealous of the Birds album, Hinterland, released in May 2023.
Albums
Peninsula
2020
Wisdom Teeth
2019
The Moths Of What I Want Will Eat Me In My Sleep
2018
Parma Violets
2016
Singles
