Bright EyesMotion Sickness
[Live / Rock]
Let's start with the obvious; this is one for the fans. If you don't like Bright Eyes, this isn' t the disk to convert you; try I'm Wide Awake It's Morning for that, or Digital Ash In A Digital Urn if you think wide-eyed, troubled Nebraskan Conor Oberst is only capable of one mode of songwriting.
This live album is composed heavily of cuts from last year's Wide Awake tour, and whilst featuring a lot of tracks from that album in their live incarnations, it also covers a couple of tracks from previous albums;"Make War" and "Method Acting" from Lifted and a scaled down (Thank you, you've been a great audience) version of "A Scale, A Mirror, And These Indifferent Clocks" entitled simply "Scale". There's also a generous wadge of bonus material, including a beautiful cover of Elliot Smiths "The Biggest Lie" and a perky, countrified take on Feist's "Mushaboom" (Yes, that song from the advert, you'd recognise it if you heard it) in which Oberst doesn't really capture the vocal but the band do a good job. The other treats are the previously un-released and rather pretty "Southern State" and a barn-storming version of Lua B-Side "True Blue", complete with an excellent solo by Saddle-Creek resident trumpeter Nate Walcott, who is pictured on the cover. In fact, this point highlights the fact that this is very much a road record and a band record; this is not Conor's record alone, and he knows it.
Sleevenotes are provided by drummer Jason Boesel (also Rilo Kiley's percussionist) and he proves an eloquent, frank and perceptive companion to the journey, couching the tour firmly in our era, with references to iPods, Japanese bullet-trains and Hunter Thompson's suicide. Readers will smile wryly at how the band crosses the path of Bush's entourage, especially given the enthusiastic reception of witty acoustic rant "When The President Talks To God".
As for the bulk of the record; live versions of Wide Awake favourites like "Road To Joy" and "At The Bottom Of Everything" are all well done; the quality of the takes culled is very high and the band strike the right balance between live spontaneity and studio accuracy. No "Lua" or "First Day Of My Life" though; but if you have Wide Awake you'll own acoustic versions anyway.
In short, this is by no means an essential record. But it is a great little snack to keep the fans happy until next year's double album. There's a lot here to like, and if you're a completist, you'll lap it up. As I've said though, if you're a newcomer, just go buy Wide Awake instead. In short; a hard record to score, but that won't stop me trying. 80
1 comment:
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