By Alex Stanley ’12
THE BRONCO BEAT

Andrew Bird – “Break it Yourself”

7.0 out of 10

Andrew Bird’s first album since his 2009 release “Noble Beast,” “Break It Yourself,” is typical Andrew Bird.

The folk musician from the Midwest has an incredibly particular style, filled with violin playing, whistling and complex, poetic lyrics.

He has steadily been gaining popularity over the years, with perhaps his most famous song being “Fake Palindromes.”

The latest installment of Bird’s music is “Break It Yourself,” a non-deviation from his classic style.

The only difference is perhaps a slower and mellower sound on the majority of songs.

The only somewhat upbeat song on the 14 song album is “EyeonEye,” a more typical indie rock sounding song.

The rest of the record is Bird doing what he is used to doing.

It takes a couple listens through to digest the album, as the gentler songs don’t quite catch the listener’s attention at first.

Having done this, the album is quite good with standout songs being, “Give It Away,” “Sifters” and “Desperation Breeds”; the latter an interesting song using the world’s bee demographic as the subject.

The only down side to this album is that there are not nearly as many memorable songs as his earlier releases.

Overall, it is worth the buy, but not as good as previous albums such as “Noble Beast.”