Nebraskan wunderkind Conor Oberst writes songs so naked and heartfelt they make you feel like a voyeur just listening to them. This precocious singer-songwriter croons with the astonished intensity of a homeless Robert Smith singing for his supper. And his bands fourth album is every bit as lyrical, sprawling, and pretentious as its title. The production is notably brighter and crisper than previous efforts, with some songs, notably "Nothing Gets Crossed Out," lushly swathed in sweet-sounding strings. When Lifted is great, as on the slow-churning anthem "From a Balance Beam," its superb, visionary pop music, on par with Jeff Mangum, Phil Elvrum, and Daniel Johnston--and on occasion, Dylan. Unfortunately, half the songs sprawl on too long or revisit the same themes too frequently. Still, anyone who can operate a fast-forward button will find much to enjoy on this vital, messy masterpiece.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00006FRN7/qid=1075782155/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_1/103-0251204-3527055
Sunday, February 1, 2004
Popular Posts
-
Somewhere along the way I learned about this magic trick. It was probably from one of those “Owl” magazines you used to get for free or an e...
-
Lots of funny stuff today. Tim, check this one. http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3
-
This is a very interesting read. I wouldn't call myself a scientist by any means, however I do think that this book collates and describ...
-
I've learned a great many things over the past month... "friends" at work are not neccessarily friends, people you thought wer...
-
We see it doing its thing, starting to fight against ordinary gravity, Adam Riess of the Space Telescope Science Institute said about the ...
-
Some interesting tidbits about Lynchs Mulholland Drive , as well as David Bowies next movie apperance. http://www.crowdsurfer.com/index.php3...
-
I had the pleasure to attend the IBM Think conference in wet and chilly San Fran from Feb 11-14th of this year. The event overall was ...
-
The first thing that you have to know is this book is long. Too long, actually, but by less than you'd think at 933 pages (on my iPad). ...
-
Now ideas for advances in data routing are beginning to emerge from a surprisingly simple model: the ant.Indeed, applying the study of ants ...