Wallis Bird

Early life

The first time Bird came into touch with music, she was six months old and received her first guitar from her father. Born left-handed, she lost five fingers of her left hand in a lawnmower accident, and having four sewn back on again. She became used to playing a right-handed guitar upside-down, which contributes to her unconventional style of playing. The Irish Times wrote: “The sheer visceral energy could kick-start an entire economy…”

After school Bird moved to the Irish capital of Dublin to study songwriting at Ballyfermot Rock School. It was here that she met fellow band member Aoife O'Sullivan. During that time she kept on playing in small clubs or pubs as well as on major festivals. She moved to Germany in 2005. Prolonging her Germany trip she met her management Karakter Worldwide and other musicians and formed a new supporting band, including brothers Christian and Michael Vinne. After first tourings Berlin, London, Dublin, Cork, Stuttgart, Frankfurt and Mannheim she decided to stay in Mannheim, where she lived for a year and a half. In 2006, Bird moved to London. In 2008 the band was joined by Irish/Belgian musician Aidan. Bird records her material in her native Ireland, Germany and in her apartment in Brixton, London. Since 2012, she resides in Berlin, Germany.

Career

Bird has been compared to singer-songwriters such as Ani DiFranco, Fiona Apple or the young Janis Joplin. In her songs she combines elements of traditional folk music, blues and funk with a rock sound. Her style ranges from soft folk to power ballads.

Accompanied by her band colleagues, the brothers Christian and Michael Vinne and Aoife O'Sullivan, she frequently tours throughout Europe. In April 2006 her debut EP Branches Untangle was independently released in Germany by her own label, Bird Records.

In October 2006, Bird signed a worldwide recording contract with Island Records Group UK. The "Moodsets EP" was released for download and on vinyl on 30 July 2007, with her debut album Spoons following on 18 September 2007 in Germany. Her song "Counting to Sleep" was chosen by iTunes as their 'Single of the Week' and the digital release of her album Spoons subsequently reached the Top 10 in the UK Album Download Chart. In the UK, her single, "Blossoms in the Street" was released on 15 October 2007, with the physical release of Spoons following 22 October 2007.

In February 2008, Bird toured the UK as support act for soul star Gabrielle, and later that year with Billy Bragg.

In 2009 (Ireland/UK) and 2010 (Rest of Europe), Bird released her second album New Boots, which entered the Irish album charts on No. 11, played over 80 headlining shows through Europe and supported over 20 shows in Europe of Rodrigo y Gabriella. During the festival summer she played over 15 festivals in Europe, including Montreux Jazz Festival, Oxegen Festival, Frequency Festival, Rock En Seine, Lowlands and Pukkelpop.

In January 2011, Bird toured with Anaïs Mitchell's performance of her album Hadestown, providing opening support whilst also taking part in the main production of the show. In November 2011, Bird released a special limited edition sole acoustic album (limited to 1000 copies) called The Mistakes are Intentional. Bird recorded the solo versions in her home in London during the summer of 2011. The CD is packaged in a wallet which has been hand-stitched by Bird herself. Bird made the album in anticipation of the release of her third album.

Bird performed at the Eurosonic Festival in 2012 when Ireland was the Spotlight Country.

Wallis Bird (2012)

Bird released her third studio album on 9 March 2012 in Ireland, Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The album was recorded in Berlin, Germany. The first single, "Encore", was released on 2 March. The music video debuted on 1 February, and had been shot in Berlin.

Architect (2014)

Architect is the fourth studio album by Bird. The album was released on 11 April 2014. The first single from the album was "Hardly Hardly", released across Europe on 28 March and 4 April 2014 respectively.

Yeah! (2015)

A live album featuring recordings from her European tours from her debut album to her 2014 release Architect, Yeah! was released in 2015.

Home (2016)

Home is the fifth studio album by Bird, and features the tracks "Change" and "Control". It was released worldwide on 30 September 2016.

Awards

Live albums

EPs

Singles

Download-only releases

Awards

Live performances

In popular culture

In October 2008, Bird recorded a cover of Depeche Mode's 1981 hit "Just Can't Get Enough" for The Sun newspaper's advertisement campaign. Following repeated requests from viewers, the song was digitally released in Europe as a double A-side single, together with Bird's own song "The Sunshine Song". In March 2010, Bird appeared on GOTV to present her favourite music videos and musical influences. Her song "To My Bones" from the album New Boots featured on an advert for Wexford tourism in 2011.