Tenuousness – Andrew Bird
Unfolding Fans – Andrew Bird
Andrew Bird is one of those artists that I always feel a bit disappointed in myself for not liking more. He does good (often excellent work). Every now and then one of his songs hits me just right and the brilliance that everyone else can see so easily shines through for me, too. But overall, it just doesn’t quite do it for me.
Part of the problem is that I generally have a hard time getting into this type of music. The brooding, intricately crafted stuff. I can appreciate it, but it leaves me feeling cold a lot of the time. Same reason I just can’t seem to “get” Grizzly Bear. Or Radiohead for that matter.
Still, as I said, every one of his records has a few tracks that break through that problem. And Noble Beast is no exception. This time around, it’s mostly the more atmospheric stuff that really gets me. Some of the interludes, for example, make me wonder what magic he could work if he ever did an album full of this kind of stuff.
Of the full-length songs, I love the quirky gait of “Oh No,” and “Tenuousness” features some excellent guitar work and superb whistling. “Natural Disasters” is the most traditionally pretty song he’s had in a while. And then there’s “The Privateers” which has a little bit more energy than the rest of the record.
The end result is a record I’ll listen to occasionally, and would happily recommend, but which is never going to be a personal favorite.