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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.

The Mysterious Production Of Eggs

EMAILPRINTby Andrew Bird

Andrew Bird reviews
85
9.4 User Score:

Album Info

Label: Righteous Babe

Release Date: 08 February 2005

Discs: 1 disc

Genre(s): Indie, Rock

Summary

You don't see many musicians described as a "whistler" but Chicago's Andrew Bird (who is also a singer-songwriter, guitarist, and originally, a violinist) fits the bill. This is his fifth release (and second for Ani DiFranco's record label), which finds him backed by several members of his group Bowl Of Fire.

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

90

All Music Guide

An utterly mesmerizing and magnetic album, almost unfair in how incredibly ambitious and impressively pulled off the whole thing is.

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90

Billboard

Taking all the best parts of Jeff Buckley, Devandra Barnhart and Rufus Wainwright, Bird can be noisy, charming, frivolous, haunting and playful all at once.

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90

Lost At Sea

The bar has been raised for 2005.

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90

Delusions of Adequacy

Genre mash-ups this ambitious aren’t easy to come by; albums that accomplish that goal with the effortless grace of Eggs are even rarer.

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90

Paste Magazine

An eminently pleasurable album that reveals more with each spin. [Apr/May 2005, p.148]

90

Trouser Press

The production is lush and detailed but the songs are strong enough to withstand all the fuss, making this a most ambitious and accomplished record.

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90

Magnet

What makes the album exceptional is its thematic unity and storybook approach. [#67, p.85]

83

Pitchfork

The Mysterious Production of Eggs might wrestle with unsavory topics, but it does so with a shrug of the shoulders, a wry smile, and a heart full of awe-inspiring song.

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83

Stylus Magazine

It’s hard to say that Andrew Bird is anything but a master-songwriter, capable of penning a song for any sort of occasion. It was the hardest challenge, however, for Bird himself to understand this power and to control it. He’s finally tamed that quivering urge and, in the process released one really long perfect moment in adult contemporary pop.

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83

cokemachineglow

Although The Mysterious Production of Eggs lacks the gleeful variety of Swimming Hour, it is obvious that Bird has created his most cohesive statement to date.

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83

Entertainment Weekly

Peaks again and again. [11 Feb 2005, p.63]

80

PopMatters

It's a densely melodic place composed of layered instruments so intricately intertwined with each other and Bird's lyrics that repeated listenings inevitably reveal a hidden but grandiose vision of what a pop record can be.

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80

The Onion (A.V. Club)

He collides substances that shouldn't mix to create a sound that not only survives the impact, but thrives in the aftermath.

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80

Playlouder

'The Mysterious Production of Eggs' is unmalicious, delicious classical indie with enough originality to mark it apart, and what it lacks in jaw dropping charisma it somehow makes up for with songwriting and instrumentation of the highest order.

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80

Uncut

Folk songs given a rarefied air by his elegant wordplay and multi-tracked chamber strings. [Mar 2005, p.108]

80

Tiny Mix Tapes

An incredibly compelling collection of inventive folk-tinged melodies.

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80

Junkmedia

Possessing a richly elastic set of vocal chords, Bird is in league with such silver-throated singers as Jeff Buckley and Rufus Wainwright, but he rarely if ever over-emotes, a common criticism leveled at Buckley and Wainwright.

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80

Almost Cool

Bird seems to have really reached a stride in terms of his overall sound and the result is one of my favorite albums of the year so far.

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75

Village Voice (Consumer Guide)

He shows off discreetly, underplaying his vocal chops and musical command, even his familiarity with scientific arcana--nay, his intelligence itself.... But discretion exacts a price in identity, clarity, and meaning.

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70

Q Magazine

Given time and a little effort, [his songs] begin to cast their own rewarding chamber-pop spell. [Mar 2005, p.98]

68

ShakingThrough.net

Eggs fails to engage with the unpredictable inventiveness of Swimming Hour, and lacks the skillful brevity of Weather Systems.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 9.4 (out of 10) based on 83 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Joe G gave it a10:
Baroque pop, wIth Joanna Newsom, Rufus Wainwright and Sufjan Stevens is in fine shape and AB is up with the best of them. The ballads are sweet and sensual, while the uptempo numbers have these wonderfully clever twists and turns in the music that make most artists seem mundane. Add to that AB's handsome and limber voice, and Nora O'Connor's perfectly matched harmonies. If there's a better whistler or violinist in pop music, I'd love to here them.

martin c gave it a10:
This may sound odd, but Andrew Bird rekindled my passion in music with this album. I altogether gave up looking for any new artists being burned so many time by 1 hit CD's, but I ran into this album while traveling, and fell in love with every track on this album. The feel, the tempo, the playfullness is what makes these songs superior to just about any new artist out there today!

Daniel K gave it a10:
Genius.

Morgan G gave it a9:
A great laid-back album. This is something you would listen to on a nice summer day while sitting on your porch. Some of the lyrics are convoluted and senselss in Bird's efforts to rhyme, but the songs aren't meant to be taken seriously. A little more energy would've helped. He has a very sexy voice.

I give this the bird gave it a4:
This is almost as bad as the Decemberists. Completely lacking in genuine emotional intensity. Whiney vocals with pretentious, uninteresting lyrics. Enough with the whistling already. Save your money or buy a Nick Cave record.

Alex W gave it a10:
Please marry me, Andrew Bird.

R G gave it a10:
i bought the cd a week before i was going to go see him live. Two experiences are totally different but the core of his music stays the same. brilliant lyricist, obsessed with science and he can play any instrument. i cannot get enough of this album

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