TracksandGigs' interest in Conor Oberst/Bright Eyes has descended steadily as he has made the transition from indie-rock angst to warm alt.country. My enjoyment peaked with 'Fevers and Mirrors' and 'Lifted..', two epic records containing both ballads and those fantastic rock songs where Conor's voice would occasionally sound like it was about to give up the ghost completely. The last two albums have focussed more on country ballads, which were very pleasant and efficiently played but lacked the spark of old.
Therefore, I wasn't too excited about Conor's first 'solo' album, believing that it was likely to be an even more stripped down and mature affair. The self titled offering is streaming now at http://www.conoroberst.com/album/ and is released on August 4th and is....really quite good.
The first few tracks are certainly low-key and reminiscent of his recent Bright Eyes albums but from 'Danny Callahan', a heartfelt song about a dying child, things improve. 'I Don't Want To Die In The Hospital' is an old style Bright Eyes bar-room sing-along led by piano, 'NYC- Gone, Gone' is similarly enjoyable while closing track 'Milk Thistle' is a sparse ballad with more thoughts on life...and death.
There are certainly several acoustic ballads but some full band songs too and it doesn't really feel any more like a solo album than recent Bright Eyes records. I was surprised at how good this sounds.
Full review coming when we receive the album on a physical format! For now, have a listen at his website.
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