No Bird Sing

To get an idea of the wide-ranging aesthetic that Twin Cities hip-hop trio No Bird Sing aimed for on its self-titled debut, look at the guests enlisted to help get the job done—the roster included master MC Eyedea, jazzy songbird Alicia Wiley, and folk-blues guitarist Bo Ramsey. The album runs the risk of feeling fractured, yawing from hard-boiled, spoken-word blues salvo to ambient comedown indie-pop record to fired-up, rapid-flow rhyme showcase. But MC Eric Blair’s precise lyrical take on high anxiety created a coherent whole. The trio’s latest, Theft Of The Commons, recorded in a Minnesota barn over several live takes, sways wildly between fast, sobering lyrics and wild, high-pitched bluesy guitars. While No Bird Sing’s minor-key melodies and funereal tone require patience, its stunning originality is rewarding over several listens. Those who take the time to let these shadowy tunes sink in will find them hard to shake.

Updated 04/20/2011