Customer Reviews

Swimming Hour

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I'm admitting up front- This is the only album I have heard from Andrew Bird, (no rhyme intended) but I'm very impressed. Borrowing from many different musical genres- traditional pop, jazz, latin, country, etc, he can be critcized for sounding derivitive/contrived. However, from my perspective he suceeds at borrowing elements, but at the same time introducing something uniquely Andrew Bird in each song. After all music is not created in a vacuum. Its obvious that he is a gifted songwriter, singer, and musician from hearing this, but I noticed that there are a couple 1 star reviews. They read a bit like the pretentious 'he fell off/ sold out after he released his first album.' I can never understand this type of stupidity. Its as if some people want the same album released over and over again. Or maybe its the ol' "I listened to him way back before he was born"

Update- Now that I've listened to his other albums, this one still stands up as very good. Its not the first of his albums that I'd reach for today (that would be Oh! The grandeur), but its the most accessible and is solid throughout. He has changed his approach dramatically from album to album, but the quality remains for all of them. The albums before "Oh! the Grandeur" are weaker than the rest

Strange as it seems, someone has reviewed this album... by comparing The Bowl of Fire's new direction (a direction they were hinting at all along) as akin to the "mainstream" sounds of Dave Matthews. While this same reviewer obviously provides useful biographical information regarding Bird and band, I think the analogy to Dave Matthews is wrong. And I think so because, whatever his merits may be, I find Dave Matthews' music to be antithetical, in effect, to Andrew Bird's. Bird is passionate, clever, self-aware, and always pushing his own envelope -- he continues to innovate & on his own terms. Dave Matthews, on the other hand, has never done anything but bore me, mostly since his music never develops, it just lopes along, on and on, in that queasy "jam band" style I personally don't enjoy.

That said, "The Swimming Hour" could just as well appeal to any kind of music fan. The songs seem, for lack of a better word, necessary -- as if they just HAD to happen that way. Like all great art (sure, this is "pop" -- which is why its greatness is that much more of a rarity), having it around makes me, and may make you, just want to perservere. And, cyber-shoppers, remember, the sound-bytes online just don't do these songs justice. Take my word for it, then take your own.

Buy it. The best way to describe his music is 1920-1930's style of music blending in elements of New Oreleans Jazz and gypsy undertones. Andrew Bird is best known for his superb ability to play the violin and his past history was playing the classical violin but then decided to move into bluegrass, folk, and swing music. He was for a time the violin player for the Squirrel Nut Zippers and had opened up for them with Bowl Of Fire .

This album actually has something for everyone. The first few tracks are for the more mainstream artsy college crowd (think Dave Matthews with a violin). The middle tracks move into exciting territory which is his own signature style with more swing/jazz/bluegrass feel to it(think Squirrel Nut Zippers meets Frank Sinatra meets Dean Martin). Then it moves onto a little Rockbilly and then back to the swing/jazz/bluegrass/folk feel. It's difficult to really pinpoint his style he has a highly polished voice with dark germanic/gypsy/folk undertones in his music which is the only way I can describe it.

He has added a new lineup for Bowl Of Fire and the only remaining player is Kevin O'Donnell for drums. Also added is Nora O'Connor for female vocals which blended with Mr Bird's voice blends wonderfully. If you have listened to Mr Bird's earlier albums you will note this one is more polished and produced then the previous one (they sound great live).

My particular favorites are "Way Out West" , "Fatal Flower Garden" & "Dear Old Greenland".

I love this Cd. I'd listened to "Oh, the Grandeur" nonstop for weeks, so I'd been eagerly awaiting "the Swimming Hour." Initially, I listened to S.H. and was appalled. How could this be the same Andrew Bird I had grown to love!? This was rock and not jazz! And now he has backup singers?!

So I put the CD back in the case and didn't listen to it for a year. DO NOT MAKE MY MISTAKE! (How many hours of pleasure had I denied myself in that year...?) I'd only listened to it once, but eventually I slipped this CD into the player again... and after some listening, I adored it!

At first, it's shocking to hear Andrew play pop/rock, but then it grows on you and it's hard to take the CD player off "repeat one" to hear another song. His use of the violin in modern-sounding (yet unclassifiable) music is ingenious. Andrew has pulled off the impossible and made a violin a rock instrument.

This Cd is perfect for driving down the expressway with the windows rolled down and the car stereo cranked way up. It's fun, beautiful, and thought-provoking (what lyrics!) all at the same time. 11:11- oh! What a song! soothing violin with his signature strumming over the top melts away and is replaced by rhythm guitar accenting some hardcore sawing at the fiddle, in that way that only Andrew can play. Amazing. You need this CD!

This album is *not* a sell-out effort. We are talking about a man who had never listened to anything but classical music until directly before he made this CD. All of his albums are different, and show off how versatile he truly is. I am fond of saying, "Andrew has a CD for every mood!" This is the crazy, hyper album.*

And do yourself a favor and see him play live! I drove 3 1/2 hours to see him and he was absolutely stunning! He is in his element on stage; so if you think this recording is something, you ain't see nothin' until you go to a live show. *swoon*

*A note about his albums: Music of Hair is ethnic, folksy and soothing, Thrills is hot jazz with Euro influence, Oh! the Grandeur is dark, brooding, and unlike anything you've ever heard, this is rock, Weather Systems is floaty, serene New Age and indicates a move back to the more obscure jazz of Grandeur. If you can find Fingerlings or any other live recording of his, you should snatch it right up.

Andrew is beyond amazing and with or without his band Bowl of Fire, he creates some of the most innovative and original music of our time. BUY THIS CD RIGHT NOW! And if you enjoy this, check out his other releases (Kevin O'Donnell's Quality Six is BOF + 2 more musicians). You will not be disappointed.

In reviews such as these, people throw around words like "Genius" and "incredible," but the catch is that the reviewers are fans of the music and are going to be biased. Now, I'm guilty when it comes to fanhood of the magnificent Mr. Bird, but please believe me when I tell you that this album is different. I have been listening to music for many years, but I have never quite heard anything like this. It can't be catagorized. It sounds like Rock, but there is definate Country influence, but it's a Jazz type influence, if you can call it Jazz. Listen, if you don't know Andrew Bird, invest some time finding out. This sound is revolutionary, but blends together years of musical influence. If you think you've heard everything and are desperate for something new, try it. Isn't it time you tried something different? Oh yeah, and if you already are a Bowl of Fire fan, get ready. Even YOU haven't heard this sound before. Give it a few rounds on the turntable before you decry, " This is not my father's Andrew Bird!" It's still the same melancholy bliss, just shaped in a new way.

So many people came away bitter when Andrew Bird took a left turn with this album. But give the man credit where it's due!

Yes, this is a pop album. His previous two Bowl of Fire releases were heavily influenced by his previous band Squirrel Nut Zippers - a 20's and 30's jazz influenced band.

This album carries over close to none of that influence.

GET OVER IT.

Now, for the review.

This album opens up with a pretty dramatic way of saying "This album's not going to sound like the other two." "Two Way Action" is one of the many pop songs on this album and sounds great.

The third song on this album may be the reason why I love Andrew Bird so much. "Why?" is probably one of the best songs of his entire career. Everything about this song is fantastic. The Drumming, violin, singing, and words all add up to one hell of a song.

But he's not over yet. I consider "11:11" ALSO one of his best songs. The multiple violin intro is breathtakingly beautiful. His voice melts beautifully into the strings before it breaks into a percussion-heavy pop song. Incredible.

The next three songs are wonderful. "Case In Point" is more of a song you'd hear on Armchair Apocrypha, his most recent album. "Too Long" is an old-timey country song with some fantastic harmonies and guitar. "Way Out West" is EXACTLY what it sounds like. A song you'd hear backing footage of men in dusters riding parallel to a west-bound train.

"Satisfied" is where things begin to pick up again. Think 60's rock with a blues feel with violin. Love this song.

I love "Headsoak." It's just a wonderful wonderful acoustic song with strings backing the arrangement.

"Dear Old Greenland" is probably my third favorite song on the album, under "Why?" and "11:11." This is the song you hear when you fall in love for the first time.

Overall, this album is WELL worth a purchase. Listen to what it sounds like when an extraordinarily talented man with a history of 20's and 30's music decides to make a pop album. And a FANTASTIC pop album at that.

I first heard of Andrew Bird just a few weeks ago when a friend dragged an exhausted me to a concert. He was jaw-droppingly good. I am now discovering his albums in reverse chronological order. This one is a mind-blower. I have rarely encountered an album that so successfully covers this many musical genres. Everything from swing to alternorock to blues to country to some other forms of music that I'm not sure are named can be found here. This sounds like a recipe for a disjointed disaster, but it comes together as a brilliantly energetic and thoughtful masterpiece. Bird's violin would be impressive enough on its own, but add to it his imagination, inventiveness, intelligence, and incredible voice and you get a must-own album. I can hardly force myself to remove this one from the CD player. Definitely the best new music I've come across in a long time.

People who think an artist should stay in the same musical box forever should just go listen to Nickelback.

Andrew Bird has created on of the most eloquent, poetic and tyrannical of albums. A work of art from top to bottom, a rootsy, swingy, alt-country angle that is completely perpendicular to all else that has come before.

I had never heard of him until I saw the Bowl of Fire live, and was absolutely floored. Bought this CD at the show and NEVER looked back. It raises traditional genres to a new level or modern rock-n-roll eloquence.

Buy it. It'll probably make your top 10 albums of the year.

How bizarre! A recent favorite group, Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire, has taken a major strange detour. I had been playing two of their earlier albums, "Oh! The Grandeur" and "Thrills," quite a lot lately, so I bought a more recent album, called "The Swimming Hour," and it's like an entirely different group.

The first two albums are wacky, almost Tom Waits-y jazz, very much in the vein of Squirrel Nut Zippers, with the addition of a bit of gypsy thrown in. The newer album is strictly rock. Sort of a late 60s/early 70s style rock, quirky and rather redolent of Donovan, with some flavoring of Wings and Nirvana (oh, and even some hints of Nick Cave). Well, I mean, it's really good and all, but What The Hell? Don't people usually change the name of their group when they try out an entirely new flavor?

This comparison to Donovan is not to be taken lightly. It sounds to me as if Mr. Bird has studied the early Apple records catalog pretty closely, and managed to create an updated sound that sounds like a musician of that label time-warped to the late 90s. Back then, (late 60s & early 70s), musicians were finding ways to fuse blues and country into rock, but throw in strings and more soulful lyrics. There really is the ghost of Donovan and Paul McCartney haunting this album. Listen to the entire oeuvre of Donovan and you too will recognize this. It's all there. Uncanny.

But yeah, I love the earlier Bowl of Fire albums, and I love this too. I am not disappointed by the radical change, but a little shaken.

I came across Andrew Bird's music a couple of years ago. This was the first album I heard and I was AMAZED! I probably spinned that CD for weeks, non-stop. The amazing thing is, there is so much depth and detail to his music. So much creativity. So much wit, and quarkiness and a sort of mysteriousness..... I can listen to his music and something new will stand out to me that I never noticed before. This CD has to be my favorite of his because of the variety of styles. It could almost be a mix CD :) Each song is completely different than the next. That's hard to find these days! His vocal styles change too. Such talent!

The CD has remained of my my all-time favorite albums. You will never grow tired of his music!

If you like swing/ jazz/ gypsy sort of music check out his previous 2 CD's as well. His newest CD is great too!! :)