The Bird and the Bee would like you to please clap your hands

By Laura Leebove
Published: January 27th, 2009 | 4:00am

In the Bird and the Bee’s song “My Love,” from their upcoming release Ray Guns are not Just the Future, Inara George sings, “Hey, boy, would you take me out tonight / I get excited when I think of crawling into your arms.” Needless to say, she was a little surprised when a friend pointed her to a Web site that had it interpreted as “I’m not afraid of when you come in my eyes — or something like that,” she tells me and clarifies again, “It’s not that at all!”

Even though the Bird and the Bee’s lyrics generally aren’t that raunchy, the pop songs crafted by singer-songwriter George (the bird) and applauded producer/multi-instrumentalist Greg Kurstin (the bee) have been known to elicit a few giggles and gasps of, “Is she really singing that?” After all, the Bird and the Bee first got recognition with a song called “Fucking Boyfriend,” the hell of a dance track on the band’s self-titled 2007 debut in which George repeatedly pleads, “Would you be my fucking boyfriend?”

George sings with a crystal-clear mezzo-soprano that could seamlessly cross over to a Broadway show tune, and that mixed with the cynicism and mischievousness of her lyrics is just part of the Bird and the Bee’s charm. “I think that Greg and I are always thriving to make sure [our music is] never too sweet or saccharine, that there’s always a little bit of an edge to stuff we do — or at least humor or whatever it is,” she says. “I think it’s something I fight, ’cause I look a certain way and have a certain kind of voice — and I do like to be polite and nice but I feel like it’s always good to be a little bit naughty too.”

On the new album, out January 27 on Blue Note, George kindly requests for fans to put their hands in the air and “shake it like you just don’t care” in “Polite Dance Song,” which first appeared on the duo’s Please Clap Your Hands EP in 2007. Then in “Diamond Dave,” she sings an ode to David Lee Roth, and album single “Love Letter To Japan” is pretty self-explanatory (“They like us over there — they were kind of the first ones,” George explains).

The lyrics and melodies wouldn’t be complete without George’s partner in crime, though, and on Ray Guns, Kurstin accompanies her with a healthy mix of jazzy bass lines (“Diamond Dave”), quirky glockenspiel runs (“Witch”), and spacey synth effects (“What’s In The Middle,” “Ray Gun”). “We just wanted to have some of the songs feel a little dancier [than our self-titled album],” George says. “We’ve been playing live and there’s a certain quality you get from an audience, when a song has a certain kind of upbeat feeling, so we wanted more of that on the record.”

Aside from composing and performing, the jack-of-all-trades Kurstin also has produced for and/or played with the likes of Lily Allen, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kylie Minogue, and Beck, among many others, which he says has an effect on his own writing. “[Playing and producing are] just two different experiences and I think they sort of balance each other,” he says. “Every time I [work with someone] I feel like I learn a new little thing, like a new trick.”

For both musicians, the Bird and the Bee serves as a fun outlet for sides of their talents and personalities that aren’t as dominant in other projects, of which both have many. In Kurstin’s case, it’s his production work and writing for other artists. George, on the other hand, has recorded two solo albums since 2005, the most recent being An Invitation (Everloving), which featured orchestrations by composer and longtime family friend Van Dyke Parks. She also is a member of the Living Sisters, a project with Lavender Diamond’s Becky Stark and singer-songwriter Eleni Mandell.

But just because they’re bouncing back and forth between other commitments doesn’t mean the band takes a back seat. “I don’t think of [the Bird and the Bee] as a side thing. I just think of it —,” George starts to say before Kurstin playfully interrupts with, “You better not, Inara! (She said the right thing).” This kind of exchange is frequent throughout our conversation — they echo each other’s responses, laugh a lot, and don’t take themselves too seriously.

And as far as their live shows go, not being too serious really is the band’s key to success. “The only thing you can do is make sure you have a good time,” George says. “If I’m having a good time [on stage], I know at least one of us is as well, even if it’s just Greg. I feel like it’s not good to get down.”

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Cam510 (over 3 years)
haha that made me laugh out loud! seriously though, that's what i love about them...the fact that they aren't too sweet and that they are a little sassy. can't wait to see them again.