Bird soars on seventh album

What would it sound like if a bird made music? More specifically, what would it sound like if a bird made rock 'n' roll? Well, the answer is probably something close to Mr. Bird. Andrew Bird employs superhuman whistling, the violin, glockenspiel and a great vocal range, giving him a sound that mirrors his name. On his seventh album, Armchair Apocrypha, Bird finds himself sticking to his signature sound while also exploring a more electric approach. \nThe album's first 20 seconds set the tone, with a droning electric guitar riff and Wurlitzer electric piano. Throughout the album you hear this change to a more electric sound, the electric guitar becomes more essential, violins are layered, and electric pianos and keyboards are employed. The change is most apparent in "Simple X," a song that is led by a wistful keyboard riff and is his only song that utilizes a drum machine. The reason behind this change may be tour mate and friend Martin Dosh, who contributed to the album by playing on and engineering it.\nThe effect of this slight departure is the album sounds darker and more tragic than previous Bird albums. Instrumental tracks like "The Supine" and the album's closer, "Yawny and the Apocalypse," only add to this atmosphere. The album is not nearly as organic-sounding, something that Bird fans enjoy about his music. While the more organic approach may better fit Andrew Bird, there is no denying that Bird has done a convincing job going in this new direction and finds a way to fit the change into his sound without changing his identity.\nLyrically, the album is similar his previous work with a lot of wordplay about catastrophic and thought-provoking subjects. Whether it's a plane crash ("Fiery Crash"), the Iraq war ("Scythian Empires") or philosophy ("Dark Matter"), Bird always seems to be asking questions and inviting the listener to think. \nWhile not quite as good as his last effort, Andrew Bird & The Mysterious Production of Eggs, Armchair Apocrypha is still a very solid album. The album, while not lacking in dramatics, feels a little more subtle than his past few albums. "Dark Matter" is not only the centerpiece, it is the album's anthem and best song. Other notable tracks include the album's opener, "Fiery Crash," the remade version of Weather System's "I," "Imitosis," and the electronica Dosh track, "Simple X." There are, no doubt, a few forgettable tracks like "Heretics" and "Cataracts," which keep this album from being his best work. But even with its flaws, Armchair Apocrypha is a strong effort and nice departure from Bird's past efforts.