NEW SINGLE FROM ANDREW BIRD “ATOMIZED” | SUMMER TOUR DATES
LOMA VISTA/CONCORD
In 1967, Joan Didion wrote that she “had dealt directly and flatly with the evidence of atomization, the proof that things fall apart.” Andrew Bird now updates her observation with the release of “Atomized,” his first new single and video of 2022.
“Start making your apologies, blaming technology,” he sings. “They’re gonna try to get a rise to unseat you, they’ll demagnetize your poles and you know they’re gonna try to delete you…Here’s what I say to them: things fall apart.”
“Didion was updating W.B. Yeats for the fractious 60s,” Andrew Bird observes, by way of explanation. “This song takes it to the pixelated present where it’s not just society that is getting atomized but the self that is being broken apart and scattered.”
Recorded live by Andrew Bird and his four-piece band of bassist Alan Hampton, drummer Abe Rounds and guitarist-producer Mike Viola, the loose and tantalizing groove of “Atomized” is overlaid not only with hypnotically-plucked violin and seamless, sudden interludes, but sharp affirmations delivered with an effortless cool.
In the accompanying music video, directed by Matthew Daniel Siskin, Bird stands at the center of a surreal world split between light and dark. Chased by a version of himself, he studies his shadow, searches for meaning and sends warnings as his mind and body begin to operate separately. But while he teeters on the edge of sanity – singing, playing, sitting and standing – the rhythm stays steady.
Though the past three years have seen Andrew Bird busier than ever – between his acting debut in FX limited series Fargo, a long-awaited collaborative LP with Jimbo Mathus, an instant-classic Christmas record, a nonstop series of live streams, an original score for acclaimed PBS documentary Storm Lake, and more – “Atomized” picks up where he left off with 2019’s GRAMMY-nominated album, My Finest Work Yet. This summer, Bird will debut the song live on his co-headline “Outside Problems” tour with Iron & Wine.
Tour Dates
6/12 – Phoenix, AZ – The Van Buren*
6/13 – San Diego, CA – The Magnolia*
6/15 – Los Angeles, CA – Greek Theatre*
6/17 – Berkeley, CA – Greek Theatre*
6/18 – Portland, OR – Pioneer Courthouse Square*
6/19 – Seattle, WA – Woodland Park Zoo*
6/21 – Salt Lake City, UT – TBA*
6/22 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre^
6/23 – Aspen, CO – Belly Up Aspen
7/22 – Atlanta, GA – Pullman Yards#
7/23 – Asheville, NC – Rabbit Rabbit#
7/24 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium#
7/25 – Cary, NC – Koka Booth#
7/27 – Charlottesville, VA – Ting Pavilion#
7/28 – Vienna, VA – Wolf Trap#
7/29 – New York, NY – Pier 17#
7/30 – New Haven, CT – Westville Bowl#
7/31 – Bethlehem, PA – Steel Stacks#
8/02 – Lafayette, NY – Beak & Skiff#
8/04 – Cincinnati, OH – PNC Pavilion at Riverbend#
8/05 – Grand Rapids, MI – TBA#
8/06 – Indianapolis, IN – TCU Amphitheater#
8/08 – Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE#
8/09 – Columbus, OH – KEMBA Live!#
8/10 – St Louis, MO – Chesterfield Amphitheater#
8/12 – Chicago, IL – Salt Shed#
8/13 – Minneapolis, MN – Surly#
*w/ Iron & Wine and Allison Russell
^w/ Iron & Wine and Neko Case
#w/ Iron & Wine and Meshell Ndegeocello