Erin McKeown – We Will Become Like Birds
Label: TVP Records
Style: Indie Folk
Released: 2005
My Grade: 4 stars
AMG: 4.5 stars
Sounds like: Ani DiFranco, Rilo Kiley, Aimee Mann


“I couldn’t get through college, I have pages of heart wrenching journal entries in ratty notebooks, boys can kiss my ass, I exist on sprouts, and oh yeah: where’s my guitar?” Thus is the diatribe of female folk singers. Let’s face it, one Ani Difranco album listen serves as an equivalent for listening to ten other folk songstresses; stuffed with repetitive words and redundant themes. I was prepared for a similar set up as I popped Erin McKeown’s new album We Will Become Like Birds into the stereo.

Now believe me when I say that I love the ramblings of the overwrought, over analytical, oversexed female gone acoustic more than most music genres, because I do. Listening to McKeown’s latest album was a pleasant surprise which included more than just the lone acoustic guitar. The instrumentals are impressively intricate, almost overshadowing Erin herself. However, McKeown holds her own, with the exception of the poorly chosen opener “Aspera,” which comes off as disappointingly stale. It’s a lucky thing that those who purchase McKeown’s albums are the types of music listeners who are sure to pay close attention to more than just the first track.

The dreaminess of her tone and lyrics of We Will Become Like Birds only continue further into the REM cycle while McKeown drifts and soars through each song, each seemingly taking on the familiar theme of flying and the absence of gravity. The touchstone of We Will Become Like Birds is the delightfully light “We Are More,” which features a cheerful McKeown accompanied by Matt Chamberlain on drums, Sebastian Steinberg on bass, and Steve Moore on keyboards. Throw in some extra hand-claps, and the song becomes even more splendid and appears to in fact, grow wings and take flight.

Mysterious and flighty (no pun intended), Erin McKeown has created a delightfully warm-hearted, soul searching album. Ani fans will approve, as will other music fans that have yet to dabble in the foggy world of females-gone-acoustic.


Reviewed by: Rachel