‘SONGS’ — New EP by Buffalo’s birddog a Masterful Mix of Old and New

Bill Santen - (Photo by JP Pierre)

Bill Santen, the Buffalo-based artist who performs as birddog, has been busy as a father, musician and world traveler since 1120 Press last spoke to him 14 month ago. Now with the release of a new four-song EP simply called ‘Songs,’ we caught up with Santen as he prepared for a trip to Austria, and spoke to him about his creative process, being a dad and his new record.

Originally from Kentucky, Santen — a former opening musician and tour driver for the legendary Elliott Smith in the late nineties before the singer-songwriter’s untimely death — moved to Buffalo and started working in the city’s music scene, accompanied by Tyler Smith on bass, Katie Weissman on cello and Bill Conroy on drums.

A prolific songwriter, Santen has been busy lately attending music residencies — one in Texas recently and another on his upcoming trip to Austria.

“(Songwriting) kind of comes and goes in spurts. Basically, we get a bunch, or a few started at once — like maybe three or four and then keep going back to them,” he said. “Usually, you come up with the melody first. Then I get really into it for a few days, especially if I’m out of town or the house is quiet.

“I work on them a lot for a few days and then put them aside and try to come back to them if it’s something I like. When we get to Austria, I’ll have some time to go back through the songs that I like but haven’t finished and just develop the ideas a little bit more. I try to write every day, but it doesn’t always happen.”

Santen’s new EP was recorded in San Antonio, Texas while attending an art residency

there in March with his wife, who is on sabbatical from the University at Buffalo, and a fellow musician named Joe Reyes. He said that Reyes took a liking to the songs and played along with him on drums and bass.

 The four tracks on “Songs” include recent gems, such as “Hi Lois,” as well as older pieces from the COVID pandemic like “Canada,” which is slated to have a video later this summer. Santen didn’t think the four songs on the new release were connected enough to be put under any title, which is why he named it “Songs.” The EP is available now on birddog’s Bandcamp page HERE and will also soon be on Spotify.

The response to the new work, he said, has been good so far, adding “the goal is just to play more shows and record more music.”

In the meantime, Santen said he was not necessarily looking forward to a trip across the world with a two-a-half-year-old who has just undertaken bathroom training. Still, such trips are importance since residencies often provide a critical source of financial support for artists.

Turning his attention to what’s happening in the world, Santen said he believes there’s hope, or so he’d like to think.

“They were saying that for protests to have an effect you need to have 3 percent of the population out carrying signs. That was inspiring. I don’t know. You go to these protests at Niagara Square and such and there’s so many people and you go home and you’re like, ‘Everybody was there, something has to change!’”

Saten said as an artist, he believes it’s important to urge people to pay attention to what’s happening in the world, though he acknowledged doing so often just becomes a sound bubble.

“Everyone is telling everyone else what they want to hear.”

As a parent, Santen said he’s more worried about the impact of social media on his son. But, he added, “both of his grandparents are very concerned about this child’s future because of the politics. I’m not. I think this mess will get sorted out.”

(Follow Santen on Instagram Here, and on Bandcamp and Spotify.)