Staff Reviews

Andrew Bird - Hands of Glory

Review by Billy Hamilton

As ways to close the year go, there’re probably better ways to see out 2012. But in this season of goodwill and retrospect, Andrew Bird has acquired enough credit over the last 12 months to deserve the benefit of the doubt. »

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'hands of glory' is an eight track companion piece to his previous album 'break it yourself'. the latest album was inspired by bird's recent 'old-time' live sets; it was recorded with bird's full band, all playing acoustic instruments, gathered around a single microphone in a church and a barn. bird's live solo shows have been notable in that he uses a multi-track system to sample and loop his own performance. for example, he may record a snippet of his performance on violin, then play a 'loop' of that sound. this provides a more full-bodied sound and aurally suggests a band performance, rather than the sound of a solo artist. andrew bird is a singer, a violinist and, since 2004, a guitarist, he is also an accomplished whistler. trained by the suzuki method from a young age and a graduate of illinois' northwestern university, bird released his first solo album, 'music of hair', in 1996.
description from www.roughtrade.com