When I first listened to Andrew Bird’s catchy, enigmatic lyrics, I started to think he was just making up words. Tenuousness? Lisboans? Plasticities? It reminded me of Sigur Ros’s use of their made-up Hopelandic language. But a quick dictionary search quickly revealed that most of the words Bird uses are, in fact, actual words—mostly references to ancient societies or obscure scientific categorical naming conventions.The real conundrum in Bird’s literary maze, then, is how he uses them; the wordplay is confounding and sometimes devoid of meaning. NPR even did a special article with Bird called Words As Instruments where Bird said, “Honestly, I don’t really care about the details. It is the sound.” Bird’s affluent ability to use words for their sounds rather than their meaning is sometimes the demarcating line between whether you love his music or you hate it….(FULL REVIEW HERE)
