It’s a little bit of a paradox that Conor Oberst has arguably never been more well known than he is right now thanks to a string of solo albums that have made him, if not quite a household name then at least not far from it, but his most well-known moniker – that of Bright Eyes – haven’t released an album in almost a decade.

Down In The Weeds, Where The World Once Was sees Bright Eyes frontman Oberst reunite with his erstwhile bandmates multi-instrumentalist and producer Mike Mogis, and arranger, composer and trumpet and piano player Nate Walcott. Album opener Pageturners Rag is not much more than that quintessential Bright Eyes album trope, an odd spoken word affair that, here, mixes Spanish and English to puzzling effect. It’s like they’ve never been away.

Dance And Sing kicks things off properly, a suitably, well, dancey song with a sweet melody, but some dark lyrics (“I’ll grieve what I have lost / Forgive the firing squad / How imperfect life can be / Now all I can do is just dance on through”) that addresses the difficult years Oberst has had away from music, having lost both his brother and his marriage.

New single Mariana Trench assuages some of the gloom with a fun, looping feel pockmarked by horns from Walcott, while One And Done is a beautifully delicate number that builds into a rousing string-laden anthem, and Stairwell Song features more glorious strings that standoff smartly against Oberst’s dark lyrics (“When I’m trapped inside my bedroom planning out my last resort”.)

The album’s lead single, Persona Non Grata, really shouldn’t work, yet its looping piano melody, a desperate edge in Oberst’s voice, and bagpipes combine wonderfully for what is probably the album’s standout track. Hot Car In The Sun is perhaps the most emotionally raw track here, just Oberst and a piano as he sings: "I was dreaming of my ex-wife’s face / It’s just painful to walk around / It’s just painful to talk about”.

Musically Bright Eye’s haven’t evolved much since their last album, 2011’s The People’s Key. But they remain masters at what they do. For introspective indie folk, there’s no one finer.

Watch the official video for Mariana Trench here.

Down In The Weeds, Where The World Once Was tracklist:

1. Pageturners Rag

2. Dance And Sing

3. Just Once In The World

4. Mariana Trench

5. One And Done

6. Pan And Broom

7. Stairwell Song

8. Persona Non Grata

9. Tilt-A-Whirl

10. Hot Car In The Sun

11. Forced Convalescence

12. To Death’s Heart (In Three Parts)

13. Calais To Dover

14. Comet Song

 indie      rock 

Author: Joe Sharratt

Joe Sharratt is a writer and journalist based in the UK covering music, literature, sport, and travel.