Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band - Outer South

This is not Bright Eyes. This is not crooning lyrics sung in a wavering voice. Whether or not Conor Oberst's previous endeavors strike your taste, this is not the same. Ten months before the release of Outer South, was the release of Oberst's first solo effort (self-titled) 1996. It was met with hesitance because the album seemed more light-hearted... something perhaps more sanguine. This is more of that, and this is more period.

(The Mystic Valley Band is Jason Boesel, Nik Freitas, Taylor Hollingsworth, Macey Taylor, and Nathaniel Walcott.)

The album has a "dirty south" feeling and you can feel the Texas it was recorded in last winter. Oberst's new lyrics may no longer be dark and deep, but they are what he wants them to be. This sixteen-track album, though, is NOT a solo record (neither was Conor Oberst, for that matter). The same five men that Oberst toured and recorded with a year ago have added their own tastes (and voices).

The album features songs written and led vocally by most of the band members (Jason Boesel, Nik Freitas, and Taylor Hollingsworth have all written songs recorded on the album along with Conor Oberst). The album therefore has significant changes in sound from song to song, yet they work together ideally.

Personally, it is an album that took a little time for me to appreciate fully. While there were songs I fell in love with immediately, the others simply needed a second listen, and maybe a venture into lyric booklet.

And if you're in the New York area, Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band are playing a free show with Jenny Lewis on the 4th of July in Battery Park. Seeing them live is wonderful.

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five tracks:
3. Big Black Nothing
6. Ten Women
9. White Shoes
11. Spoiled
13. Roosevelt Room