Andrew Bird

Of all the good releases last week, the one I'm having the most fun with is Andrew Bird's Armchair Apocrypha. LCD and Modest Mouse have been neglected as Armchair gets repeated plays on the ipod, at the house, and in the car.

In the weeks leading up to the album's release I knew absolutely nothing about Mr. Bird. The blogs were pumping out some press and I stumbled upon Heretics, which initially bowled me over. I know a few details about the artist but consciously decided not to seek out more. I know he's no newcomer on the scene, despite being a newcomer on mine.

Does anyone else get fatigued by the glut of new artists and music every day. Too many of them are initially compelling but ultimately lacking depth or simply mediocre or worse from the get go. There is a desire to keep abreast of the music world, but some days it all seems unrewarding and I cradle old records like shepherds So I guess when Andrew Bird came along it was one of those days where I was weary of the new artist. But Heretics kept popping into my consciousness, and I decided long before its release that I would be picking it up.

Whenever I get excited about a new album I tend to engulf whatever information I can about it. I love first listens as much as I love reading what various critics have to say. Lately this seems like a whole lot of white noise that somehow deviates from my own interaction with the record. With this one I did none of the normal routines, fuck I don't even know what the guy looks like. I'm just reveling in the relative anonymity of it all. I'm not concerned with how the rest of the world likes it, just myself. I like the confusing elements, the underwhelming ones, the ones that make you smile. I like the way it sounds.

I like this record. Maybe you will too.


Andrew Bird - Heretics mp3
Andrew Bird - Fiery Crash mp3
Andrew Bird and Nora O'Connor - Oh Sister (Bob Dylan cover) mp3


Armchair Apocrypha on Amazon