Oberst moved about the stage with a ferociousness that made it difficult to tell just how genuine his own enjoyment was, but he did touch upon the importance of us treating each other with care and kindness while clasping hands with some stunned fans in the front row. You could have heard a pin - or in California, a vape pen - drop during “Poison Oak” off 2005’s I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning as screams of “I love you, Conor!” filled the air during breaks in the action. Everyone at the Greek Theatre held that night close with the same precious care, still unable to believe to some degree that we were back together again, finally back with Bright Eyes. It melts away into an elated disbelief after about 4-5 songs as wide-eyed fans exchange toothy grins with perfect strangers, saying everything without having to say anything at all. There is something about seeing a band you never thought you’d get to see again - an anticipation and unspoken electrical tension lingers before the music actually starts. As if that wasn’t enough, they hit us with an unbelievable encore led by “First Day of My Life” and “I Believe in Symmetry” before closing a perfect night with “One for You, One for Me”. We were treated to classics like “Old Soul Song”, “Falling Out of Love at This Volume”, “Poison Oak”, “Another Travelin’ Song” and even “Something Vague” as well as “Neely O’Hara”. However, nothing set the crowd off quite like the older tunes, especially after two and a half years at home isolated from society. The entire show carried an underlying adrenaline rush, quiet but consistent, threatening to burst through. Oberst showed off some new dance moves he must have learned while in lockdown, thrashing about the stage with a single earring and a glittery black guitar.
And it genuinely looked like they had a blast. (Personally, I am writing this from the grave as a result.)īright Eyes weaved in a rightful amount of newer material, finally offering 2020’s Down in the Weeds, Where the World Once Was the proper live show it deserved. They opened with “Dance and Sing” before testing the fabric of the crowd’s emotions with a one-two punch featuring “Lover I Don’t Have to Love” followed immediately by “Bowl of Oranges”. The band was tighter than ever, with Nate Walcott perched on his rightful podium of keyboards and strings and Mike Mogis flanking Oberst as his literal righthand man.
With Bright Eyes fresh off the release of their first three companion EPs in May, it’s clear that looking back looks good on them. The tour’s second leg kicked off this month with markedly less hitches, and by the time Oberst and his sidekicks made it to LA (“a second home for many of us” as he noted), they delivered a performance that was nothing short of astounding. Concerned fans came out of the internet woodwork shortly thereafter, nearly cataloging his onstage behavior night to night, wondering if his well-documented demons would let him make it through the next show. And therefore, somehow, some day, some way … we will be OK, too.īright Eyes haven’t exactly had a smooth start to their pandemic-plagued “Down in the Weeds Where the World Once Was Tour” across the U.S., with Oberst hurting his wrist from a fall during their Detroit gig early on the first leg. The good news is that Conor Oberst is OK. The bad news is that Americans with uteruses lost the right to make a decision about their own bodies last week.
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