MP3: Andrew Bird – Scythian Empire
How cool is this? Andrew Bird wrote the first installment of the NYT’s Measure for Measure, a new blog that tracks a few songwriters through the composition of a song. In this case, Bird shares a bit about himself before talking about a new song called “Oh No.”
The song in question is called (for now) “Oh No.” It began, as do most of my songs, with a sound. It could be a creaking door or a delivery truck or the sound of multiple stereos wafting out of bedroom windows. For the last four years the same dancehall beat has been has been rattling the foundation of my Chicago apartment. When I stay at my farm, sparrows, coyotes, chickens and frogs find their way into my songs as well.
In the instance of this song I was on a flight from New York back to Chicago and a young mother and her 3-year-old son sat in front of me and it was looking to be the classic scenario of the child screaming bloody murder. However, I was struck by the mournfulness of this kid’s wail. He just kept crying “oh no” in a way that only someone who is certain of their demise could. Pure terror. Completely inconsolable. It was more moving than annoying.
So when I got home I picked up my guitar and tried to capture the slowly descending arc of that kid’s cry. It fit nicely over a violin loop that I had been toying with which moves from C-major to A-major.
Read more Bird’s article “Words Will Tell.” The end’s particularly great, as he muses on his perceived wordiness. Andrew Bird, you be as wordy as you want. Also revealed is that he’s going to be recording his new album soon. Rejoice!
0 responses so far
Leave a Comment