Andrew Bird
I Want to See Pulaski at Night
One thing’s for sure when it comes to Andrew Bird — the man doesn’t sit still for long. Whether he’s working in collaboration, touring with a band, or hitting the road on his own to spread some holiday cheer, the violinist likes to keep busy, and for fans that means new music is almost always waiting in the wings. On I Want to See Pulaski at Night, Bird’s newly released seven-song EP, everything revolves around the record’s centerpiece, “Pulaski at Night,” a romantic waltz of violin passages that sure-footedly swells into a pulsing arrangement of resolute plucks and quivering vocals. It’s an utterly Birdsian offering, but not necessarily the EP’s strongest track. That honor goes to “Ethio Invention No. 1,” a six-minute instrumental that feels equally indebted to traditional Eastern music and Debussy, while still managing to inflect Bird’s signature wit and quirk. Later down the line, the all-instrumental “Hover I” dishes up some of Pulaski’s prettiest and saddest moments, all the while reminding us that Bird, no matter how productive, remains a master of his craft.
