You can get off to a fast start. You can sustain your opener with the main course, not filler. But can you end on a high note? Sometimes I wonder if recording a strong closer is the most difficult thing to pull off when it comes to album rock. When it comes to the cream of the crop in music, I can think of more strong openers than strong closers. Nonetheless, I still have my favorites which I’ll be featuring on Mental Jukebox all month.
The celestial presence of I Want To See Pulaski At Night makes it my favorite Andrew Bird album. But it’s worth stating, I don’t think there’s even one weak album in his entire catalog. His folky foray into beautifully crafted string arrangements, whistle refrains and wry lyrical explorations never gets old for me. From this album, “Pulaski At Night” is the track that has the most awareness and appearance on Bird’s live set lists. But the closer – “Ethio Invention No. 2” is just as much a thing of beauty.
As the song descends on your earbuds or speakers, I feel simultaneously lifted up into the ether when I hear it. As I mentioned before, there’s a celestial aspect to the entire album. With this closing track, in particular, Bird introduces us to a new galaxy of wonderment. It’s like he was holding out on us the entire album until this last track comes on. The plucks are like flickering stars and the violin interludes are like dazzling comets darting every which way. The track is a journey you take with your mind’s eye, not just your ears.