Andrew Bird

How many singer/songwriters do you know who are famous for their whistling? I only know one, and that is Illinois multi-instrumentalist Andrew Bird. Notorious for his world-class whistling, the songwriter is also a master guitarist, singer, violinist, and glockenspiel player - and master is no overstatement. Trained in Suzuki violin method from a young age and holding a Bachelor of Music in violin performance, Bird has developed a huge indie following, and with his newest album, Armchair Apocrypha, some modest commercial success. But it is on his previous album, Andrew Bird and the Mysterious Production of Eggs, where his bizarre lyrics and eclectic instrumentation are at their best.

The album opens with a sweet violin introduction and moves quickly into "Sovay," a light guitar ballad with a slinky glockenspiel melody. From there, Mysterious Production of Eggs explores a range of sounds from catchy rock to edgy electric folk, and everything in between. Ubiquitous is a thick, multi-layered sound in which Bird's expert violin playing meshes with acoustic and electric guitars, sparse drums, glockenspiel, and most uniquely, whistling.

On this record, Andrew Bird has created something new. With aspects of folk, rock, classical music, and country, Mysterious Production of Eggs defies categorization. Even more spectacular are Bird's solo live shows: accompanied only by a multi-track recorder, Bird plays and loops violin and guitar to create a lush texture, then loops his voice and whistling to produce gorgeous, harmonized melodies.

Here is a sampling of Andrew Bird and the Mysterious Production of Eggs.