Hands Of Glory

'hands of glory' is an eight track companion piece to his previous album 'break it yourself'. the latest album was inspired by bird's recent 'old-time' live sets; it was recorded with bird's full band, all playing acoustic instruments, gathered around a single microphone in a church and a barn. bird's live solo shows have been notable in that he uses a multi-track system to sample and loop his own performance. for example, he may record a snippet of his performance on violin, then play a 'loop' of that sound. this provides a more full-bodied sound and aurally suggests a band performance, rather than the sound of a solo artist. andrew bird is a singer, a violinist and, since 2004, a guitarist, he is also an accomplished whistler. trained by the suzuki method from a young age and a graduate of illinois' northwestern university, bird released his first solo album, 'music of hair', in 1996.