Commenter Of The Day: Andrew Bird Live Edition

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I've had the pleasure of seeing Andrew Bird live a few times, starting in 2002 when he'd just gone solo and later as his craft evolved. A classically trained violinist, Bird's music started out mostly with live bits on violin and guitar with some whistling in between. Eventually, Bird started incorporating a looping machine so he could build lush, live sounds on stage without the need for a large band. This works because of Bird's precise rhythm and sharp ear. If you're not paying attention you might miss him tapping a button on the ground to start the loop then re-tapping it to add another level. It's where engineering makes sounds, just like in D-Fence's great story about the Ferrari wind tunnel.

Interesting story to that windtunnel:I had a guest lecture by a guy who took part in building it and they said they had to meet harsh noise levels (as it is right next to some houses (other side of the road)), I think it was 30db 100m away while the tunnel was running. The only problem was, they couldn't measure them, as they tried at night and even the crickets were louder than the windtunnel. The only time there were no crickets someone slammed a cardoor shut, so in the end the officials just said fuck it and approved it without a noise level check :)

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Too bad, I bet the sound is the best part.