Andrew Bird has unveiled his new video for ‘Left Hand Kisses’ featuring the talented Fiona Apple. The song is taken from his forthcoming LP, ‘Are You Serious’ due April 1 following which he’ll be touring the UK and Europe. Watch it below:
Talking about how the duet came about he explained “At first it was just my voice. Then another voice came creeping in and I thought ‘this should be a duet if I can find the right person.’ I needed to find someone really indicting. She was totally committed. I can’t write simple love songs. People are complex.”
The new album promises to be his most lyrically direct to date with key contributions from Fiona Apple and Blake Mills.
Three years ago while travelling west to California to start a new life with his wife and young child they stopped at the family farm in rural Illinois for two weeks to catch their breath. The previous two years had been intense to say the least: raising a child in New York City as his wife battled a serious illness. With these dark days behind them he spent the next seven days on the front porch writing the lyrics for what became “Are You Serious”.
The album was put together with a rigor akin to a novelist or playwright and musically crafted like a wrecking crew session where you have to be good right in that moment. There’s little folksy quaintness or whimsical flights of fancy. There’s less wordplay and more intent to process some difficult times that he went through. From the album art, created by the godfather of conceptual art John Baldessari to foregoing his traditional writing process, Bird has emerged from challenging times and a new process with an album that may be his best.
Live Dates
30 Apr – Dublin, Ireland – Vicar Street
02 May – Edinburgh, Scotland – Queen’s Hall
03 May – Manchester, England – Cathedral
04 May – London, England – Roundhouse
06 May – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Paradiso
08 May – Brussels, Belgium – Cirque Royale
09 May – Paris, France – Trianon
Pre-order ‘Are You Serious Deluxe Edition’ via Amazon