Andrew Bird Releases New Single "Sisyphus," Announces Boldly Titled Album My Finest Work Yet

Multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, whistler and overall talented human being Andrew Bird has released his latest single, “Sisyphus,” and announced his forthcoming new album, My Finest Work Yet. Bird, like many artists these days, found himself inspired by our current political landscape.

He reflected in a statement:

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.

For those of you who weren’t Greek mythology nerds in high school, “Sisyphus” is named for the king doomed by the Olympic gods to roll a stone unsuccessfully up a hill for eternity after he attempted to escape death. Bird explains that this track “is about being addicted to your own suffering and the moral consequences of letting the rock roll.”

The single benefits from an overall buoyancy, despite its mournful tone. It’s a fitting companion to his previously released track “Bloodless,” which also appears on the album, and shifts between uplifting battle cries and blues-inflected melancholy. If the new songs sound slightly rawer than Bird’s past work, it’s because the entire album was recorded live, sans headphones or separation, with instruments’ sounds feeding into the other mics.

Andrew Bird Releases New Single “Sisyphus,” Announces Boldly Titled Album My Finest Work Yet