42. Bright Eyes: Lifted or The Story is in the soil, Keep your Ear to the Ground
Despite it’s pretentiously long title, Bright Eye’s 4th album is his untoppable masterpiece. The first time I ever heard of Bright Eyes was my senior year of High School. The TV Studio had put on a coffee house and someone performed Waste of Paint, a few days later someone played me the song “The Calendar Hung Itself”. I was very taken by the fact that one man could have two very different sides to him. Near the end of my senior year we had a class trip to Disneyworld and found a copy of the CD in downtown disney.
I remember flying home listening to this record and being completely captivated, specifically to the songs Bowl of Oranges, From a Balance Beam and Let’s Not Shit Ourselves (to love and to be loved). This isn’t to say the other 10 tracks aren’t insanely bizarre and unique as well.
The opening song The Big Picture (which is my least favorite song on the album) is one of the most bizarre opening tracks ever. The almost 9 minute long song doesn’t begin until roughly 2 minutes into the track. Before that you just hear a couple walking into a car and driving, the girlfriend gives the boyfriend directions and slowly the song fades in on the radio, throughout the song you hear the girl awkwardly singing along.
Even quirkier is track 3 (False Advertising) which stops mid-song when a musician plays the wrong note. He apologizes lead singer Conor Oberst says it’s okay and then the song starts back up again.
For someone who was clearly depressed at the time of writing this album Oberst manages to have fun and even write an uplifting song or two (specifically the infetiously catchy Bowl of Oranges).
Check out this album (almost 10 years old now) and see that even after the last decade it’s still one of the most unpredictable records released.
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