By: Karla Ludzack
 |
|
Andrew Bird - Publicity photo
|
Bird's canvas consists of his voice, his violin, his birdlike whistle, an electric guitar, a xylophone, and some tape loops. He combines these to conjure up songs for his live show. His voice lies somewhere between Jeff Buckley and Jeff Mangum (Neutral Milk Hotel) with a richness and purity that can become a menacing growl. He's a classically trained violinist who uses the instrument in both traditional and nontraditional ways. I never knew you could pluck a violin like a guitar until I saw him do it. He also uses his lips to whistle, adding another dimension to his multi-instrumental sound.
Sometimes he picks up an electric guitar to add another level to the sound, or hits a note on the xylophone if that's what is needed. Any of all of these things might be recorded for Bird to insert into the song a little bit later. That's one of the joys of seeing him live---he creates the whole song while you are sitting there in front of him. I would like to describe the sound as sparse and minimalist, but once you've seen how much goes on at once onstage at an Andrew Bird show, that hardly seems accurate.
Bird was in good form at the Bryant Lake Bowl despite a bicycle accident that day, which left him with sore muscles and a limp. He was busy looking up at Victorian houses on Summit Avenue, hit a pothole and tumbled over the handlebars. He assured us that he was fine, although he did seem a little disoriented at times.
Bird played tunes from an upcoming CD which he just finished recording; a few from Fingerlings 2, a live CD featuring solo performances, as well as some with the Bowl of Fire, Nora O'Conner, The Squirrel Nut Zippers, and My Morning Jacket; his last solo CD was Weather Systems; and the last Bowl of Fire CD The Swimming Hour. I picked up Fingerlings 2 and Weather Systems at the show.
Fingerlings 2 gives a good idea of what Andrew's live shows sound like. The missing ingredient, however, is that it doesn't capture the visual experience.
The Bryant Lake Bowl was a great location for the two-night stand. I only attended the first night, but I ran into a friend who was planning to return the following evening. Bird commented that he really liked the intimate setting. It also gave a great acoustic quality to the various sounds. The audience is always small and quiet at the BLB since it isn't the type of venue people attend who aren't there to see the music.
I'm still amazed at the way Bird plucks that violin! I will say that I do miss the band shows and the voice of Nora O'Conner. From what I hear on Fingerlings 2, they sound like a lot of fun. As for Nora, I got to see her and Andrew open for Kristin Hersh once, and that woman can really sing! They sounded really good together and I would like to have the opportunity to hear that again.
Location Info:
Bryant Lake Bowl
Artist Info: Andrew Bird
Share this story:
Article comments powered by Disqus