Andrew Bird – ‘Noble Beast’

Rating: 8.5/10

It’s hard not to love Andrew Bird.

His brand of smarty pants folk-pop manages the difficult feat of being both distinctly original and warmly familiar and inviting. On top of this, he’s had the audacity to bring virtuosic whistling (yeah, with your own mouth) to its rightful place at the forefront of contemporary music. Well, not really, but he puts his own unstoppable whistling chops to great use.

Bird records are always a welcome mess of fantastic musicianship and witty wordplay, and “Noble Beast” is no exception; yet it’s exceptionally great. It’s better than its predecessor “Armchair Apocrypha” even, which despite its high points, came off a bit stiff and mannered.

Opener “Oh No” kick-starts the album with the three musical elements associated with the artist: violins, delicate acoustic guitars and a catchy whistled melody. The refrain, “Arm and arm, we are the harmless sociopaths,” is sung with such glee that you can’t help but chuckle and sing along. “Oh No” is truly a great pop song with utterly indecipherable lyrics.

Bird always starts things on a high note, which occasionally results in front-loaded LP’s, but such is not the case with this album. The record is consistent throughout; the slower moments properly intermingle with the upbeat numbers and brief musical interludes.

“Not a Robot, But a Ghost,” which is presumably about a breakup, builds tension with a frenetic, distorted drumbeat, only to lead to an exultant release in its crooned, tree-level chorus. A favorite track is “Fitz and the Dizzyspells,” mostly because it has an amazing whistling solo where you expect the guitar solo to come in. Sorry, but I love whistling.

Despite all of his strengths, Bird sometimes comes off a little too calculated and obtuse for his own good. Some of his word choices and song titles (“Tenuousness,” “Anonanimal”) make me want to lightly slap him in the face.

Other than that, “Noble Beast,” with its delicate balance of easy listening and intellectual stimulation, is one of the best albums so far this year.