Armchair Apocrypha | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | March 20, 2007 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 48:27 | |||
Label | Fat Possum | |||
Producer | Andrew Bird | |||
Andrew Bird chronology | ||||
|
Armchair Apocrypha is the fourth solo studio album by the American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird. It was released on March 20, 2007, through Fat Possum Records. The album features more electric guitars, a change from the more acoustic-oriented album Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs , though the songs are similar in character if slightly more straightforward.
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 81/100 [2] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [3] |
The A.V. Club | A− [4] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+ [5] |
The Guardian | [6] |
Mojo | [7] |
NME | 7/10 [8] |
Pitchfork | 7.7/10 [9] |
Q | [10] |
Rolling Stone | [11] |
Spin | [12] |
The album has been given a Metacritic score of 81 out of 100 based on 31 reviews, indicating universal acclaim. [2]
The album debuted at number 76 on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling about 11,000 copies in its first week. [13] The album has sold over 100,000 copies by November 2008. [14]
All tracks are written by Andrew Bird, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Fiery Crash" | 4:12 | |
2. | "Imitosis" | 4:01 | |
3. | "Plasticities" | 4:27 | |
4. | "Heretics" | 3:33 | |
5. | "Armchairs" | 7:02 | |
6. | "Darkmatter" | 5:07 | |
7. | "Simple X" | Bird, Martin Dosh | 3:36 |
8. | "The Supine" | 0:59 | |
9. | "Cataracts" | 3:12 | |
10. | "Scythian Empires" | 4:34 | |
11. | "Spare-Ohs" | 4:07 | |
12. | "Yawny at the Apocalypse" | 3:39 |
Chart (2007) | Peak position |
---|---|
French Albums (SNEP) [15] | 124 |
US Billboard 200 [16] | 76 |
US Digital Albums (Billboard) [17] | 9 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [18] | 5 |
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) [19] | 21 |
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard) [20] | 10 |
Andrew Wegman Bird is an American indie rock multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. Since 1996, he has released 16 studio albums, as well as several live albums and EPs, spanning various genres including swing music, indie rock, and folk music. He is primarily known for his unique style of violin playing, accompanied by loop and effect pedals, whistling, and voice. In the 1990s, he sang and played violin in several jazz ensembles, including Squirrel Nut Zippers and Kevin O'Donnell's Quality Six. He went on to start his own swing ensemble, Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire, which released three albums between 1998 and 2001. Weather Systems (2003) was his first solo album after Bowl of Fire disbandment, and it marked a departure from jazz music into indie music. Bird's 2019 album My Finest Work Yet was nominated for "Best Folk Album" at the 2020 Grammy Awards.
Weather Systems is the second solo studio album by the American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird. Released on April 1, 2003, it was his first studio project after disbanding the band Bowl of Fire. Bird has said that the album was simply a side project during his four or five year recording of Andrew Bird & the Mysterious Production of Eggs. At least two of the songs on the album suggest this fact: "I" is a slower, more dreary version of Armchair Apocrypha's "Imitosis," and "Skin" is a similarly slow, instrumental version of The Mysterious Production of Eggs' "Skin is, My."
United Abominations is the eleventh studio album by American thrash metal band Megadeth. Released on May 15, 2007, United Abominations is the first Megadeth release distributed through Roadrunner Records and, with the exception of the band's frontman Dave Mustaine, was recorded with an all-new line-up. It is the first album since The World Needs a Hero (2001) to be recorded by a full-time line-up as the previous studio album The System Has Failed (2004) was recorded by Mustaine alongside session musicians. While touring to promote the album, guitarist Glen Drover left the band for personal reasons and was replaced by Chris Broderick, leaving this as the only Megadeth studio album to which he contributed.
Bird on a Wire is the second full-length studio album released by Lava recording artist Toby Lightman. The album peaked at No. 30 on Billboard's Heatseekers Albums chart on 11 August 2006.
Haley McCallum, professionally known as Haley and formerly Haley Bonar, is a Canadian-born American singer and songwriter who was raised in Rapid City, South Dakota. She has lived in Duluth and currently St. Paul, Minnesota. In 2009, she moved to Portland, Oregon, where she spent a year writing songs for her 2011 album Golder. She plays acoustic guitar, baritone electric guitar, electric guitar, and Rhodes or Wurlitzer electric piano, either solo or with her Twin Cities-based band, including Jeremy Ylvisaker, Robert Skoro, and Jacob Hanson.
Fingerlings 3 is the third album in a series of live releases by the American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird. Unlike the previous Fingerlings, Fingerlings 3 contains songs not recorded live in front of an audience; "Dear Dirty" is a studio track and "The Water Jet Cilice" and "Ethiobirds" were recorded live (solo) at Andrew’s home studio in a barn in rural western Illinois. Tracks "Dark Matter" and “Scythian Empire" are live recordings of songs that were later included on Bird's 2007 album Armchair Apocrypha.
Martin Chavez Dosh, better known mononymously as Dosh, is a multi-instrumentalist based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Snakes & Arrows is the eighteenth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released on May 1, 2007, by Anthem Records. After their R30: 30th Anniversary Tour ended in October 2004 the band took a one-year break, during which they agreed to start work on a follow-up in January 2006. The album was recorded in five weeks with co-producer Nick Raskulinecz, a fan of the group who was praised by each member for his approach and technique. It contains three instrumental tracks, the most on any Rush album.
Thrills is the second studio album by the American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird, and his first with his band Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire. It was released on April 7, 1998, on the Rykodisc label.
Martina is the seventh studio album by American country music artist Martina McBride. It was released in September 2003 by RCA Nashville. It was a number one on the country album charts and number seven on the US album charts. The album produced four singles on the country charts: "This One's for the Girls" at #3, "In My Daughter's Eyes" at #4, "How Far" at #12 and "God's Will" at #16. "This One's for the Girls", which featured backing vocals from Faith Hill, Carolyn Dawn Johnson and McBride's two daughters, was also McBride's first and only Number One hit on the Adult Contemporary charts. The album was certified 2× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.
Revelations is the third solo studio album by American country music artist Wynonna Judd, released in 1996 on MCA Records in association with Curb Records. It was her first album since Tell Me Why three years previous. The album's lead-off single, "To Be Loved by You", was her fourth and most recent to date #1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. The second single, "Heaven Help My Heart", peaked at #14 on the same chart, while "My Angel Is Here" and "Somebody to Love You" both missed the top 40, becoming the first two singles of her career to do so. The album itself peaked at #2 on the Top Country Albums charts and #9 on The Billboard 200, and was certified platinum by the RIAA.
Noble Beast is the fifth solo studio album by the American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird, and his eighth overall. It was released on January 20, 2009. Two songs from this album were previewed on his webpage; "Oh No" and "Carrion Suite", while the entire album was made available by NPR as a streaming feed. Noble Beast was made available as a standard CD release, a special limited-edition deluxe two-CD package and a double-LP package.
Break It Yourself is the sixth solo studio album by the American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird, released on March 5, 2012, through Mom+Pop records in the US and Bella Union in the UK. The track "Lusitania" features a duet with St. Vincent.
"Forever & Always" is a song written and recorded by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift for her second studio album, Fearless (2008). Swift was inspired to write the song by her short-lived relationship with Joe Jonas in 2008. Produced by Swift and Nathan Chapman, "Forever & Always" is a country pop and pop rock song with lyrics about a troubled relationship with an ex-boyfriend. Music critics found the song catchy but generic, and they commented that it set the precedent to Swift's songwriting about her highly publicized personal life on subsequent albums.
Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of... is the eighth solo studio album by the American singer-songwriter Andrew Bird. It was released on June 3, 2014, through Wegawam Music Co.
"Dance with Me" is a song by American recording artist Kelly Clarkson from her seventh studio album, Piece by Piece (2015). Produced by Greg Kurstin, it was the first song written by Dan Rockett after collaborating with Polow da Don in his tenure as a studio runner and an audio engineer at Interscope Records. Originally penned as a David Bowie and Lady Gaga duet, the track was later sent to Clarkson who was recording songs for her first greatest hits album Greatest Hits – Chapter One (2012) at the time. Instead of being included for Chapter One, she later recorded the song for Piece by Piece. An '80s U2-inspired energetic synthpop and dance-pop anthem, "Dance with Me" is a song about dancing and escapism, serving as an invitation and to dance with one another.
Are You Serious is the tenth solo studio album by Andrew Bird, released on April 1, 2016. The album features collaborations with Fiona Apple and Blake Mills.
Holiday Night is the sixth Korean studio album and ninth overall by South Korean girl group Girls' Generation. It was released digitally on August 4 and physically on August 7, 2017, by SM Entertainment to commemorate the group's tenth anniversary since their debut in 2007. Lee Soo-man, founder of SM Entertainment, served as the album's executive producer.
Lee Brice is the fourth studio album by American country music artist of the same name. It was released on November 3, 2017 by Curb Records. The album's lead single is "Boy".
"Treacherous" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, taken from her fourth studio album, Red (2012). Swift wrote the track with its producer Dan Wilson. Blending styles of country and pop, "Treacherous" is a slow-burning ballad that builds up into a finale. Its lyrics are about a narrator's attempt to protect a fragile and dangerous relationship. A demo of the song was included in the tracklist of Red's deluxe edition.