Music
Press
"In over thirty eight years in the recording industry, I can count on one hand the number of bands that have it all. Impossible Bird is at the top of the list." - Bob Lang - Robert Lang Studios
We highlight an April album that belongs in heavy rotation.
We all have our musical blind spots. Even the most ardent music lovers struggle to appreciate certain styles outside their wheelhouse. But every now and then, a band or artist turns out an album that’s so well executed, there’s no denying its merits, even if it’s not a genre one would normally dig. This is exactly how I’d categorize the debut EP by Seattle alt-folk duo Impossible Bird. It was April’s pleasant surprise. The five-song album is a mix of fiddle and falsetto, backed by incredible talent: Canadian Tyler Carson mans the fiddle and Stroh violin—a violin that uses a metal horn instead of a wooden body to resonate sound—and brings each song to life with energetic lead lines that rip away any notions of the folk blahs. Vocalist-guitarist Nick Drummond, formerly of local acoustic rock band the Senate, churns out propulsive guitar lines that keep the acoustic two-piece from sounding small. The instrumental arrangements are reminiscent of Dave Matthews Band, but Drummond’s clear vocals give Impossible Bird a sound that’s refreshing and entirely its own.
Opening track “Here I Am” showcases the duo at its most playful and anthemic; it’s not hard to imagine a summer festival crowd clapping along. (Perhaps at the Northwest Folklife Festival? Impossible Bird will be playing there on May 28.) The EP isn’t a one-trick pony, though; “Overture” is darker, like its set in an old Southern Gothic mansion with creaking floorboards and door hinges, thanks to Carson’s fiddle work and the clever use of clanking chains as percussion.
Lyrics aren’t Impossible Bird’s forte, but the track about a marriage proposal—“Bottle of Wine”—is genuinely sweet with lines like, “A ring’s like a watch that shows no time.” While Drummond has a tendency to excessively repeat his refrains (most songs have about a minute and a half worth of lyrics stretched into four-and-a-half-minute songs), it’s forgivable since the core of Impossible Bird is melodic instrumentation, not poetry.
Acoustic duos simply aren’t supposed to have this big a sound. It’s really only a matter of time before Impossible Bird has an equally large audience. - Seattle Met
"An absolutely stellar combination of upbeat alt-folk that's mesmerizing and radiates talent… Seattle's Impossible Bird is the Next Big Musical Duo" - Seattle Weekly
Discography
Self-titled EP - Released 2012
Photos
Bio
IMPOSSIBLE BIRD is a duo that will shake your bones. The genre smashing duo from Seattle has been turning heads up and down the West Coast of North America with their blend of infectious songs and captivating live shows. And the music industry is starting to notice. In April 2012 they released their debut self-titled EP which was instantly hailed as a musical tour-de-force by critics from across the musical spectrum, many noting that it signified the start of something truly exceptional. “Impossible Bird is the next big musical duo” said the Seattle Weekly. The EP won Seattle Met’s Album of the Month, and has been praised and championed by local djs Shawn Stewart and Marco Collins. And they’ve only been a band for a year.
Welcome, to the new beginning.
The Story:
It was eight years ago that the funky and catchy songs of Nick Drummond started the toes tapping and hands clapping of audiences across the Pacific Northwest. Playing then with his first band, The Senate, people of all ages would fill venues to capacity to witness this band light up the stage. Soon they were playing sold-out double-headers at venues such as Seattle’s Triple Door and Columbia City Theater, and playing alongside such notable personalities as A Prairie Home Companion’s Garrison Keillor, who praised the group and Nick’s songs as, “Truly remarkable. Brilliant Dionysian music.”
It was at one of these shows that Nick met Tyler Carson, an internationally renowned violinist and fiddler. On tour at the time with the Canadian band The Paperboys, Tyler joined Nick for an impromptu jam that lasted for almost six hours. Musical sparks flew, and a bond was formed that would outlast the life of The Senate, and prove to be the start of something truly remarkable.
Tyler, whose musical career has spanned two decades (he’s 29, now) began his musical journey busking with his sister Kendel Carson, drawing large numbers of people in with their twin fiddles and electric stage presence. Together they would travel the world, with tours of Japan, Thailand, the Cayman Islands, New Zealand, the Jerry Lewis Telethon in Hollywood, as well as multiple appearances as soloists with the Victoria Symphony Orchestra. However, despite tours around Europe and the world playing classical and folk music, he says he has finally found a musical home within the music he and Nick are creating. “This is the first time I’ve ever gotten to draw from every one of my musical backgrounds – and often within the same song!” he says.
Adding to his technical prowess on the violin, is his new instrument, a Stroh, or resonator violin. The bowed sound coming out of a brass horn is a haunting, disembodied sound which according to one audience member “sounds like a dream, but feels like the truth.”
Holding it all together is Nick’s percussive guitar. At times reminiscent of early Dave Matthews but with sparks of world influence, it provides a solid and evolving grove for his captivating lyrics and Tyler’s soaring instrumental counterpoint. Together they weave musical tapestries which run the gamut from haunting to joyful, melancholic to spiritually alive.
It is within this world of rhythmic and melodic intrigue that audiences in the US and Canada have found themselves enchanted, and carried somewhere new. Their music comes at the listener from all angles, and makes one feel things to the core. It’s rare that a duo can play a full two hours, and have the audience literally hanging off every word, every resolution, every note. But that is what happens when these two share the stage. Before too long, the audience joins them on their feet, and everyone is dancing along.
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