CONOR OBERST - CONOR OBERST

It's been something like thirteen years since indie wonder kid and Bright Eye's brain child Conor Oberst has released a 'solo' effort. This self titled album was recorded over two months in a make-shift studio in Mexico with a collection of musician friends now known as The Mystic Valley Band.
The album is twelve tracks of toe-tapping fun like 'I don't want to die [in the hospital]' and 'NYC-gone-gone' to the Dylanesque 'get-well-cards' and quieter, subtle and introspective moments like in 'lenders in the temple'. The album is lovely in its entirety and solidifies Mr Oberst's reputation as one of the greatest songwriters of this decade.It's no big secret that Conor [yes, we're on a first name basis] is heavily influenced by the sixties folk revival scene, with artists like Bob Dylan and Neil Young obvious name drops. So whether you choose to pidgeon hole this album as something obscure like post-folk-revival-revival or alt-country-indie-folk or whatever doesn't really matter because it's easier to describe it as good.
I know it's vague to say something is good. This album is good because I think Conor has done some truly great stuff in his career. For the uninitiated, I'd suggest going and having a listen to his song No one would riot for less and tell me you don't feel an inkling of emotion afterwards or Youtube his performance of When the President talks to God on Jay Leno. In fact go invest in his entire back catalogue and get to know him a little better. Regardless of whether you want a long-term relationship with Conor/Bright Eye's music or just a brief one record fling; this albums as good as any place to start.