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Andrew Bird - The Mysterious Production of Eggs (2005)

The Mysterious Production of Eggs was released in 2005 on Righteous Babe Records, with the same band line-up as the previous record. With this album, Bird has finally finished his sound that he will stay with for the next few releases. Moving away from the more unconventional music in Weather Systems, Bird has created a stylistic blend of folk, alternative rock, and baroque pop, which makes this his most accessible record. Though this album is a bit more guitar driven, the violin and whistling is still featured prominently, creating a layered sound with loops of violin samples harmonizing with the guitar. The lyrics on The Mysterious Production of Eggs show an advancement in Andrew Bird’s song writing. He writes about themes such as childhood, death, and science, using a particularly vast vocabulary. Though his themes tend to be quite profound he conveys them in a whimsical and sometimes comical manner.

The album starts out with some typical Bird ambience on /=/ and leads into a laid back song, Sovay, a single released on an EP in 2004. The third track is the best of the album and possibly one of Bird’s greatest songs, A Nervous Tic Motion of the Head to the Left. A fan favorite and regularly featured on set lists for live shows. It is an epic with slightly enigmatic lyrics about the miracle of human life. Andrew Bird emotionally sings “Why are we alive? / And here's how they replied / You're what happens when two substances collide / And by all accounts you really should have died”. The song is a mix of a somber ballad, that open and close the song, and the middle is an upbeat pop song with an extremely catchy whistled riff.

In Banking On A Myth, Andrew Bird gives commentary on the Record Companies these days saying “he's the one to know, doesn't matter if you blow / no, no, no, no, fact it's just the thing / he thinks we're needing / it's a lukewarm liquid diet they're force feeding”. It is one of the heavier rock songs on the album, with a leading riff on the guitar. Tables and Chairs is musically one of the better songs on the album. There are some great harmonies made by the violin and glockenspiel as well as between Bird and Nora O’Connor. Skin, Is My is a re-visited track from Weather Systems that is also one of the better musical songs. Bird adds lyrics to this older song over the up tempo jam between the guitar and violin. O’Donnell performs brilliantly on this track adding some excellent percussion. The Happy Birthday Song is another highlight of the album, and a personal favorite of mine. It is a mellow ballad driven by a pizzicato violin riff and eventually builds up to a full sound with harmonies on the violin, guitar and glockenspiel. Bird delivers emotional and somber vocals singing “sing me happy birthday / happy birthday / like it's going to be /going to be your last day.”

I would say that Mysterious Production of Eggs is the best starting point if you’re looking to get into Andrew Bird. He achieves a more conventional style but still stays true to his roots, creating an eclectic sound that will define Bird for his next few releases. This album is the best from his solo career, with every track bringing something new to the album, and little filler. The only problem I have with this album is that it doesn’t feature any of Bird’s ambient instrumental songs that are driven by the violin rather than vocals.

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