eMusic Review 0

eMusic Contributor

02.14.11

In many ways, moving away from young manhood

2011 | Label: Saddle Creek

Conor Oberst was just 22 when Lifted or The Story Is in the Soil, Keep Your Ear to the Ground turned Bright Eyes into something of a mainstream band (and Oberst into an inadvertent ambassador for emo, then a new and nebulous genre). Now, Oberst is about to turn 31, and in many ways The People's Key — the first new Bright Eyes LP since 2007's Cassadaga — is a record about relinquishing all "the fireworks and the vanity" of young manhood. "I'm still angry with no reason to be," he sings on "Shell Games," and it's that last bit — the acknowledgment of privilege — that belies his maturation. We all get older; the hot, righteous indignation of youth eventually wilts into something more reasonable — or at least something we can shake our heads at.

Like fellow shape-shifter Will Oldham, Oberst has released music under a cornucopia of guises, but Bright Eyes — his project with longtime producer and multi-instrumentalist Mike Mogis and a rotating cabal of one-off contributors — feels like the most salient. Oberst had previously hinted that The People's Key would be the final Bright Eyes record (he's backed off that claim recently), and if it… read more »

"No teeth"

With the exception of "Ladder Song," this album has no teeth, no guts. Oberst is still a great wordsmith but his world weariness comes off as easy listening to me. While it's musically complex, so is Sting. That doesn't mean that I'm going to enjoy it. You can mature, become musically diverse and still challenge the world (aka Joe Strummer). This album reminds me of late Cure; it's good but not compelling. I loved Cassadaga, and because of that, I hoped that the reviews of this album were wrong, but they're not. I love this band, but I'm pretty sure this album is forgettable. I also appreciate spoken word interludes that are smarter than the lyrics not out there and denigrating to them. Overall, it's an alright album with classic lines, but I expect more from Bright Eyes.

Could be the best yet

I'm still letting this album settle in, but upon first listen this could be his best album yet. The kid still has it, and Mogus continues to add great production to Conor's brilliant lyrics. To all the haters, if there is a better songwriter out there please tell me who it is. I listen to a TON of music and no one is writing as profound and meaningful lyrcis as Conor is. The only negative on this album is it seems too short for a Bright Eyes record. Seems like it's missing a few tracks.....