BIRD, BIRD, BIRD, THE BIRD'S THE WORD.

Happy Friday everyone! The artist of the day is Andrew Bird.

I saw Andrew Bird in concert last fall. Believe me, you have to see him perform live in order to grasp his musical genius. To review Bird's albums apart from witnessing his technical process is too sterile and superficial a basis for analysis. You must let the Bird show you the Way.

Bird is a one-man band. Via a pedal looper, Bird records eight or sixteen measures of one instrument. The recorded loop then repeats in the background, allowing Bird to switch to another instrument, thereby adding a second layer to the previous looped sounds. Bird can actually loop five or six instruments into one song - including his notorious whistle - and can repeat or stall the loops at whim. In essence, Bird creates his own back-up band. Thus, he is at once the conductor and musician, the director and the actor, the beginning and the end of all his musical creations.

Enough talk. Watch the video, yo!

Andrew Bird - Episode # 03 - Fiery Crash