Nora Meier helps audiences let go with “Bird in the Hand”

Nora Meier is back with her long-awaited single, “Bird in the Hand.” Released last month, the light-hearted track explores a burgeoning new love and all of its excitement on a warm night. “You make a bad joke funny,” she muses, painting a scene of optimistic hesitancy and a gentle coax to let oneself feel goodness again. With a “The Whole of the Moon” reference and her classic acoustic campfire feel, Meier further cements her rightful spot in the Boston folk scene. When she sings, “Be good to me baby, I want you to want to be good to me,” sincerity seeps out. 

I caught up with Nora to weigh in on all things songwriting, live performance, and French Press skills. 

YLM: As someone who has heard this song  performed acoustically, the full production creates an entirely different vibe. How do you choose to strip down your tracks for intimate gigs, or inversely how do you flesh them out for recording?

Nora Meier: I almost always begin performing the song exactly the way I wrote it, solo with guitar or piano, and then that acoustic performance is the first step to building out a larger arrangement. If I bring it to a band, I always play solo for them before we jump into arrangements. If we're recording, I'll often track my vocal and instrumental live first and build around that. As a songwriter, it's important to me to make sure the bones are good before I add anything else so I can always strip it back for a solo performance without worrying about the integrity of the song. That being said, I studied arrangement in college and I absolutely love to find more dimensions that can really bring the song to another level. For "Bird in the Hand" I was interested in finding a bigger sound, especially to make the bridge feel as exciting as I imagined it. 

YLM: This is your first single since your debut LP released two years ago. Was “Bird in the Hand” written while you were touring that material? 

NM: It was actually written after a weekend-long recording session for someone else's project. Some people tend to find being on tour inspiring for songwriting, but I use it mostly for the editing phase. I like to bring songs that I'm polishing so that I can make adjustments and consistently try them out with an audience. Recording, on the other hand, is a lot more inspiring for generating brand new material. There's something about the constant repetition of the recording process that makes me feel motivated to find a fresh song.

YLM: The confessional, but matter-of-fact way you write paints a picture that isn’t just vivid but accessible. Who are some of your favorite contemporary songwriters?

NM: Oh, you know I love this question!! These days I'm really into writers like Lucinda Williams, Waxahatchee, Fiona Apple, and Stephen Merritt of the Magnetic Fields. I think all of those writers have an admirable ability to look right at the hard truth of something and keep their humor intact. I want music to make me feel deeply, but I also want it to make me laugh. I also want to give an honorable mention to Labi Siffre, who is not necessarily contemporary but is having a contemporary resurgence of his songs' popularity. That's a guy who can be completely, totally earnest and I find it so moving. I'm striving for that kind of honesty in my lyricism. 

Photo by Zoe Hopper

YLM: The track sounds like how a summer night feels - any perfect scenario you’d like it turned up in, or playlist you’d like it added to?

NM: Have it cranked at a lake day with your friends, cold beverage and hotdog in hand! 

YLM: I’ve asked you this before, but time may have changed your answer! Are you at a yellow light in life right now? Which gear are you hitting, if so?

NM: Wow, I just went back to look at what I said last time you asked me this. I gave a pretty esoteric answer, but this time I'm gonna say I'm at a yellow light trying to decide if I'm a French press person or a coffee maker person. I've historically gone with French press because I love a strong brew, but now that I live with more roommates, I've been using the coffee maker and I'm having an identity crisis because I kind of love not having to scrape the grounds out every time.

“Bird in the Hand” is out across streaming platforms

Catch Nora on tour here.