Song Quotes by Andrew Bird

I don't write poetry and then strum some chords and then fit the words on top of the chords.

— Andrew Bird

Every time I get up in the morning, melodies occur to me and I start trying to shape lyrics to melodies.

— Andrew Bird

I put a lot into my records, and I won't release anything I'm not totally thrilled with.

— Andrew Bird

What you see with your eyes when you're making music is going to have a profound effect on what you hear.

— Andrew Bird

Most of the songs that I appreciate are lyrically vague.

— Andrew Bird

People who are thinking about your music almost as much as you are, that almost never happens.

— Andrew Bird

I've always had levity in my songs, so I like to turn things over, twist them around, and make fun of myself.

— Andrew Bird

Some of my earlier songs are kind of more about mental illness.

— Andrew Bird

My head is full of shifting patterns and polyrhythmic stuff; but I want to use all acoustic instruments and create this kind…

— Andrew Bird

You can build up expectations for a song before you record it, and then it's like nothing's good enough in the studio.

— Andrew Bird

Every time I make a record, it's kind of like scarification or something. You work 15 hours until you're stupid. You're just…

— Andrew Bird

I spend a lot of time working by myself developing songs, but I really need some other counterpart to help me pull…

— Andrew Bird

There's always that struggle between me wanting to keep [song] new and fresh and then be - I can never get with…

— Andrew Bird

I create little challenges for myself, like, 'Okay, whatever you do in this song, you've got to somehow work in Greek Cypriots,'…

— Andrew Bird

What's cool about indie rock is that one band can do effectively the same thing as another band, and one band nails…

— Andrew Bird

All the folks I play with come from jazz backgrounds or at least appreciate spontaneity within the parameters of a pop song.

— Andrew Bird

There's kind of this unequaled thrill of playing a half-finished song, it's kind of sense of slight embarrassment; like you're blushing. I…

— Andrew Bird

I'm coming from a place that's more experimental and indulgent already, so for the last 10 years, it's been more like, "How…

— Andrew Bird

I think jazz was just seeking respect and validity because a lot of people didn't believe it was a viable art form,…

— Andrew Bird

Some of your best songs come from a desperate attempt to escape, so sitting in an airport for hours I can just…

— Andrew Bird

The orchestra's an amazing instrument, but I don't want to just arrange my songs for it. I think that might be kind…

— Andrew Bird

I have some irrepressible pop impulses to write an appealing, concise song. And I also have some irrepressible kind of restlessness as…

— Andrew Bird

I've always found that whatever you say about indie rock, it is the most inclusive genre or title for anything. It doesn't…

— Andrew Bird

There's been this perception that Europeans still hold on to, that they discover the real talented ones in American culture and give…

— Andrew Bird

I don't get particularly precious about things like this, though. Like the record company said, "We need a radio edit that delivers…

— Andrew Bird

Guitars are kind of just, you know, sexy, especially old vintage ones.

— Andrew Bird

No, it's not dissatisfaction that inspires me to tinker with my songs, it's just restlessness.

— Andrew Bird

Music as a social conduit has always been important to me.

— Andrew Bird

The idea of writing songs because you're depressed and you need to communicate it somehow, that isn't really true for me.

— Andrew Bird

It's not set in stone. I like to keep it rolling and changing, and so I am like, "Great, I get to…

— Andrew Bird

I've literally opened it up to suggestions and it's totally chaotic and kind of a bad idea. You don't need the actual…

— Andrew Bird

The music that I write is often not necessarily full of doom and gloom. You'll notice in most of the darkest songs,…

— Andrew Bird

I think when I was pretty young I got really into the tone of my instrument and I remember just playing one…

— Andrew Bird

Pretty much any given day, barring some major distraction, I get melodies coming to me. Lyrics don't come quite as easily. So…

— Andrew Bird

There's always a tension between wanting to write a really concise, instant gratification type song that gets under your skin the first…

— Andrew Bird

I can't relate to the process of just disappearing and writing a record, all at the same time, followed by the sort…

— Andrew Bird

If you take a little time, let's say three weeks off, after recording a song, and you listen to it every other…

— Andrew Bird

I've always felt that dark lyrics with dark music is pretty useless. Maybe that's a strong statement - not useless, but for…

— Andrew Bird

There's songs that could either be taken as a conversation between two people, like "The Privateers," or "Why," from a much earlier…

— Andrew Bird

The problem is, when you're working with orchestras, you only get the orchestra for about two hours before the performance to pull…

— Andrew Bird