4AD/ The Red Hot Organisation 'Dark Was The Night'

I remember buying 'No Alternative', a similar alt-charity record for the Red Hot foundation, on its release in 1993 and it was this album that led me to discover Pavement, so it will always hold a fond place in my memory. Sixteen years later it is interesting to see how different an 'alternative' compilation sounds. Back in '93 grunge was in vogue and most of the songs on 'No Alternative' were loud and guitar heavy. The most obvious difference between the two albums is that on 'Dark Was The Night' you probably hear twice as many acoustic guitars as you do electric, reflecting the current trend for alt.folk or whatever it is called these days.

4AD have certainly pulled out all the stops for this compilation, curated by The National. Containing 30 tracks and featuring some of the biggest names in US indie, this undoubtably serves as a excellent document of the times. The problem is, and it is a problem on all compilations of this type is that there is a reason that artists have left these songs off their own albums, or deamed them expendable enough to not keep them for insertion on a future album....they are often not that good.

This holds true for the contributions from Bon Iver (dull enough to be on 'Blood Bank'), Arcade Fire (ok, but nothing thrilling), Iron and Wine (very slight), Beirut (could have been a b side) and The Decemberists. Elsewhere, The National offer a decent new song about a girl lost in New York who is "praying for Pavement to get back together"), Spoon provide some welcome humour and a jaunty melody and My Morning Jacket contribute a light, charming waltz.

The most successful contributions are from artists who do something a little different. Belle & Sebastian's Stuart Murdoch reworks an old Scottish folk song into a pretty and touching song with a lyri he wrote to sing at his Church. It is lovely and the best thing here by some distance. Conor Oberst re-records 'Lua', his lonely tale of drug-addicted lovers, with Gillian Welch. As a duet it works perfectly, sounding fragile, broken and tired. Finally Blonde Redhead join with The Devastations on the hushed Bjork-esque 'When The Road Runs Out'.

The compilation would probably have been better had some of the less essential stuff been ommitted and the running order been cut from the pretty exhausting 30 tracks. There is something for pretty much everybody here though and it is such a worthy cause that if you are only interested in a couple of the songs, it is still well worth buying. Those artists who have made the effort to have provided something interesting rather than just providing something, should be applauded most loudly.

['Dark Was The Night' is out now on cd from 4AD]

more on Conor Oberst album

apologies for the lack of updates but there's not much new out there and I have been listening to old Innocence Mission albums (albums that I never, ever tire of) and the Conor Oberst album.

Regarding the latter, I may have under-rated it even with the 8.4 mark I gave it (incidentally, after letting albums 'sink in' after reviewing them, I think I also under-rated the Fleet Foxes LP and over-rated the Mountain Goats LP this year...everything else I pretty much stand by). It is a superb record and the song 'Moab', not a track I noticed much in the first few plays, is a favourite at the moment. A song about moving on and then coming home...about finding peace...it is all kinds of wonderful and Conor sings the lines "see those headlines coming towards us/ that's someone going back/ to a town they'd said they'd never/ yeah they swore it on their lives", like he totally believes in what he is singing and the music he is making. Good to hear. If you haven't already bought this album, do so now.

There is more stuff coming up soon though. Including a review of the new Mark Kozelek live EP and live reports from Sun Kil Moon in London and Tindersticks in Brighton.

and if you think there's something else I should be listening to, let me know...

Conor Oberst 'Conor Oberst'

Bright Eyes frontman Conor Oberst has been described as the 'new Dylan' several times in his career so far. While this tag seems to be given to any American who can tell a story and play an acoustic guitar, this never seemed appropriate to Oberst as much of the music he has made with Bright Eyes and the Desaparecidos has mixed the folk sound with indie rock and punk. The last couple of Bright Eyes albums moved more consistently towards an alt.country sound though, and this solo album continues this trend.

This seems to only have been labelled a solo album due to the absence of Bright Eyes collaborator Mike Mogis. Much of the record still has a full band sound and it is not the vocals/acoustic guitar record that you might have expected. If ever Oberst has made a record that reminds me of Dylan and a particular part of his career though, this is it. Recorded in Mexico and with a cover that shows Conor sleeping in a hammock, this record is extremely reminiscent of 'John Wesley Harding'/ 'Nashville Skyline' era Bob Dylan.

Focusing largely on themes such as escape, moving on and death, 'Conor Oberst' starts with 'Cape Canaveral' a sparse, acoustic ballad. From there, it settles into a run of fuller country-sounding songs which Oberst sings well, with a warm voice lacking the histrionics of old. 'Danny Callahan', a true story about a boy who died of bone marrow cancer is touching and 'Get Well Cards' is a 60s sound song with organ and harmony vocals.

Elsewhere, there are some more upbeat numbers. 'I Don't Want To Die In The Hospital' is the most 'Bright Eyes' sounding song here complete with the manic vocals of old, while 'NYC- Gone Gone' is a fantastic bar-room stomp that you'll be singing along with on the first listen. The closing 'Milk Thistle' ensures that the album is bookended by Oberst's quiet reflections on death and moving on, its a thoughtful, peaceful end to the record.

'Conor Oberst' really surprised me. I wasn't keen on the last few Bright Eyes albums but this is a rich, atmospheric record that is very well played and recorded. The die-hard Bright Eyes fans may not like this new direction but this may just be his best work to date.

8.4

['Conor Oberst' is out now on CD/2LP on Wichita. Available from all good independent record shops. itunes/hmv/amazon don't need your money]

first impressions... Conor Oberst 'Conor Oberst'

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.