Fingerlings 2 is Bird’s second in an ongoing series of live albums. This particular collection contains some solo works in progress from Andrew’s latest album, The Mysterious Production of Eggs, as well as some great collaborations, including 2 tracks as a duo with Nora O’Connor, one with My Morning Jacket backing him up, and 2 full on band rockers with the Bowl of Fire.
Mojo Magazine named it a December 2004 album of the month: “If there’s one thing besides bank balance that distiguishes indie from major artists, it’s the stop-gap records – often live – that they put out between official albums. Major label ones are generally throwaway; indie ones, sold via gigs and websites, are often as good as, or better than, the “real” releases. The second in Bird’s live Fingerlings series falls into the latter category, for one simple reason: Bird is extraordinary live. Switching seamlessly between violin and guitar, and with a haunting voice that at times recalls Jeff Buckley, he creates a compelling if unclassifiable hybrid of alt country, introspective folk, classical and jazz. On Spanish for Monsters he sings the blues over gypsy violin; on Happy Day he’s clapboard gospel; but First Song is the highlight, the vocal and guitar, bucolic whistles and warbles riffing wonderfully off each other.”

芝加哥唱作人Andrew Bird的新专辑 <Andrew Bird and The Mysterious Production of Eggs> 是上半年又一重头戏。这是一张关于童年、关于想象力的专辑，古典出身的 Bird 几乎包揽了全部器乐的编排与演奏。专辑前后经历三个版本，最终呈现给听者的是小提琴、钟琴、电吉他以及 Bird 招牌式的口哨交织的一派生机， jazz 风格的 chamber-pop ，优雅中处处闪现着机智。访谈中 Bird 先生提到， 27 年音乐生命中从未离开自己的创造力，便是源自童年的 mysiterious production 之一。

All tongues and cheeks aside, "My Finest Work Yet" finds Bird grappling with themes of current day dichotomies and how to identify a moral compass amidst such divisive times. “I’m interested in the idea that our enemies are what make us whole—there’s an intimacy one shares with their opponent when locked in such a struggle. If we were to just walk away would our enemies miss us? How did we get to this point and how can we, through awareness of it, maybe pull ourselves out of this death spiral,” says Bird.