Words: Alex Wood | Photos: Heidi PetersAndrew Birds performance at Pritzker Pavilion was one of the best shows in Chicago this summer.Its a bold statement, but hear me out.I saw countless shows in the last four months. From big names like Phish, LCD Soundsystem, Pearl Jam and Wilco to small, equally impressive performances...

Andrew Bird- Are You Serious [4/1]After a series of folk releases and experimental instrumentals, Are You Serious finds Andrew Bird going back to his older sound, but with a flare of accessibility that never existed prior. With a heavy emphasis on a percussion section of drums and bass within the production, the album strikes as...

Andrew Bird recently performed on Ellen in support of his upcoming record Are You Serious. Fiona Apple joined the Chicago violinist for a stunning rendition of Left Handed Kisses.The duet, which also features Apple on the studio cut, is an insanely clever track, written about Birds inability to write a simple love song. The...

Andrew Bird has announced Are You Serious, a new full-length record out April 1. The album will be the first proper studio release of original material since 2012, following the Handsome Family covers record Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of, and the experimental Echolocations: Canyon.In an unusual move for Bird, the record will feature guest...

By Alex Wood | Images: andrewbirdmusic InstagramThe fourth and final night of Andrew Birds Gezelligheid run at Fourth Presbyterian Church found the Chicago violinist in an especially comfortable form, leading to a number of rarities and live debuts.Though about half of the songs played were also performed at Mondays show, there are never two identical...

By: Alex WoodBird followed with another potential live-debut, a song from the upcoming album that was initially intended to be a love song but became a clever song about writing love songs and their often formulaic and banal lyrical choices. Perhaps most importantly, Bird announced that the song would appear on the album as a...

Andrew Bird's intimate 'Gezelligheid' Decemberperformances at 4th Presbyterian Church has become a tradition for the local songwriter, despite Bird having skipped the shows in 2014.Luckily for fans, the violinist announced a four-night run in the beautiful downtown venue for 2015, taking place December 7, 8, 9 and 10.As in past years, the performances will feature Ian Schneller's infamous horn...

2006 was a big year for My Morning Jacket.Z, considered by many to be a high point of the bands studio work, was released less than a year prior, and marked a decisive change in the bands sound, abandoning much of their gritty southern-rock roots in favor of a cleaner, more experimental style.A massive...

Last year, Andrew Bird covered The Fake Headlines from the New Pornographers Mass Romantic. The song is featured on Good People Rock, a compilation of cover songs from various artists recorded for charity organization Yellow Bird Project.A video was recently completed for the track, which features an elaborately-designed marionette plot, making for an extremely...

By: Alex WoodMurder By Death- Big Dark Love [2/3]Murder By Death have developed their strange brand of alternative-country throughout the years, combining gothic and western imagery with the gruff, snarling vocals of Adam Turla, all atop a romping, crashing, energetic musical backdrop. Big Dark Love continues to develop the bands sound, but with a bit...