Categories : Folk + Roots, Music Reviews, Rock + Pop.
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Rating: 4/5 Released: March 20, 2007 Reviewer: David Coats |
Formerly on Ani Difranco’s Righteous Babe label, now on Fat Possum, one of the most anticipated indie releases of the year is Andrew Bird’s follow-up to 2005’s The Mysterious Production of Eggs. While Eggs could best be described as experimental folk, Armchair Apocrypha is more of a straight-ahead pop-rock record. The song structures are less ambitious, but ultimately more cohesive, while featuring tried-and-true Bird elements, including whistling, a light-hearted ‘carry on anyway’ response to the general pessimism of Bird’s lyrics, which are the focus of this record.
Right from opener ‘Fiery Crash,’ Bird’s distinctive lyrics (more overtly leftist than on previous records) and unique rhyming style (for instance, ‘premonition’ with ‘imposition’), are on full display. Bird is an undeniably strong storyteller, ranging from character-driven parables (‘Imitosis’) to academic, historical metaphor (‘Scythian Empires’).
This record is more pessimistic than usual in tone, focusing on themes of loneliness, the failures and ironies of politics, media, and popular culture, and the implications of those on the psychology of the self. ‘Scythian Empires’ is a particular highlight (“Five day forecast brings black tar rains and hellfire / while handpicked handler’s kid gloves tear at the inseams / their Halliburton attaché cases are useless / while Scotch-Guard Macintoshes shall be carbonizedâ€), as is the lamenting ballad ‘Spare-Ohs,’ critiquing our environmental desensitization and double-standards.
Now an acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, Bird’s original instrument was violin, which he brings out in full force on several tracks, including two stellar instrumental selections – ‘The Supine,’ swelling cellos accentuated with delicate violin plucking; and the dramatic, purifying closer ‘Yawny at the Apocalypse,’ complete with ‘bird’ calls, its sprawling symphony capturing the joys of simplifying and starting over.
Though not as distinctly ‘Bird’ as Eggs, and while the melodies are not as strong on this effort, Armchair Apocrypha is nonetheless a rich record with compelling lyrics, engaging production, and plenty of musical variety.
