So far I'm really loving this EP. Should I be embarrassed as I feel there's a lot of Bright Eyes hate around here? If M. Ward can like him, why can't we?

Loving that he's finally got polished production, something that definitely makes his earlier stuff harder for me to listen to though I think the songs are stronger. A perfect follow up to the promise of "I'm Wide Awake" and luckily not at all the detour that "Digital Ash" was.

Funny, one trip through the EP and I was a little disappointed in the polished production. Hopefully it will grow on me, though this has been a gradual process since Lifted. The lyrics seem as sharp as ever though.

This leaked? Time to (try and) control the inner fanboy and try to hold off for official release.

Oh, it's just the EP, hold out for the album, whet your appetite with this.

I gave it a quick listen tonight and it sounded very solid, especially the single. I'll definitely give it s'more play during the week.

On a somewhat related note, is there any Maria Taylor love on the board? The recently leaked album has some solid tracks, but I'm not feeling the overall album like I did 11:11. I think it's got potential to grow, though.

"Four Winds" is one of the best things he has done, IMO.

He opened with it at Roo last year and I was pretty blown away and this just strengthens that feeling. The other songs are all really solid, if not earth shattering. "Tourist Trap" covers familiar ground, but is so goddamned pretty that it's hard to avoid being sucked into the gorgeousness of the song.

i'm a big MT fan, and 11:11 was one of my faves last year...listened to the new one, and it's got some promise, but haven't listened to it that much

Just listened to this two more times. Really excellent stuff. If these are the outtakes, how amazing will the album be?

yeah this is a relaly solid EP. "Four Winds" is all kind of awesomeness. Like Andyroo said, if these are the outtakes, I can only imagine how good the actual album will be.

And the new Maria Taylor is sort of a downer to me. I really enjoyed 11:11, but this, eh, it's not doing a whole lot for me. Sounds really generic and bland.

I used to be a big big big fan of Bright Eyes
now I like Wolf Eyes...
hrm.

I'm downloading this right now though, I'm curious.
Once he blows up real big everywhere again (ala 2005) I think I'll sell my copy of his original hand-silk-screened numbered-out-of-300 debut "Letting Off the Happiness" vinyl
I paid $175 for it a few years ago...
it could go big

Yeah, this is good. Anyone trying to get ticket for his Metro show? I think I might even go to the Metro box office and risk being scoffed at by the clerk when I ask, "Um, yeah two for Bright Eyes please?"

I was iffy about getting tickets to the show, but am pretty sure I want tickets after how much I'm digging this new EP. I really want to listen to the new Andrew Bird some more, but I just can't stop listening to this.

he's all growns up! this EP has promise, his lyrics are still incredible, his voice is better and the music has some nice structure, i love the fact he's strayed away from digital..., although there were a few choice songs on it, i'm wide awake... was more sound IMO

I think I'm the only person on the planet that preferred Digital Ash over I'm Wide Awake.

Anyone know of a ticket limit for the show @ Metro?

is that the official word? that these are b-sides apart from 'four winds' which is a single off the album? cos admittedly on first listen it thought this ep was average, but it's really grown on me and now i'm excited for the album!!!

This is standard Bright Eyes. Oberst usually releases an ep or big single before an album with one album track and 3-5 non-album b-sides. The b-sides often become legendary (among Bright Eyes fans) songs in their own right.

These b-sides sound like a-sides to me. If these are in fact rejects from the album this album is gonna be something special. Really digging the soft rock vibe in track 4, that solo is so old school it's almost new school.

Good point, "Loose Leaves" (a Lifted b-side I think) is one of my favorite Bright Eyes songs.

indeed: true blue off lua was a great b-side track and love how blues clues asked him for the rights to the song and he said...no. love it.
meanwhile this 'cartoon blues' track is freakin me out. good though.

cool, yeah loose leaves and true blue are two of my favourite BE songs!
in that case, i can't wait to hear the album if this is the quality of the b-sides!!!
cartoon blues is the standout track for me...
does anyone else feel like tourist trap could've been written by m.ward? was it actually written by ward? cos that's him on backing vocals isn't it?

Ha. I had no fucking clue what that song was REALLY about until I saw him play it after "When the President Talks to God" at the Berkeley High Auditorium in uber-liberal Berkeley, CA. The crowd went bananas. And also: that song is all kinds of better live than it is on the Lua single.

I'm surprised Oberst didn't oblige the Clues folks, what with Steve Burns and all.

It's all about "Well Whiskey."

okay, that just clicked in my brain now... that is awesome!!!

good one as well..man! i've listened to the EP about 10 times over now, and it's so freakin great. makes me want to geek out

By the way, the Saddle Creek store is taking pre-orders on this now (as well as the Maria Taylor), and both will ship two weeks early (on February 20th).

http://www.saddle-creek.com/

The total for both discs (with shipping) was just $18.83. Steal!

Sold out in five minutes.

Amazing EP.

I couldn't be more excited about the new record. I think some of the songs on this EP rank with his best work, ever.

I went to the box office but didn't get there 'till 12:10, they were long gone. Some guy in line said he tried online at 12:02 and they were sold out. Got my Clipse and Animal Collective tickets though.

Yeah, I was on my way over there when my friend called me at about 12:10 and said they were sold out. Oh well, got Neko tickets, so the day was far from a waste.

Oh yeah, I woke up and got me some Neko tickets for the 30th, too! Shit man, I spent a lot of money today already and I haven't even gone out yet.

I've listened to the EP three times now. It's all good, but I don't really think it kicks in for me until M. Ward starts singing on "Smoke Without Fire." Not that the first two songs are bad by any stretch, but it's really at that point in SWF and the following few songs that got my attention.

And my streak of never being able to see Bright Eyes in concert continues... YES!



That is the one thing I hate about living in Chicago as far as concerts are concerned. Yeah, they're are tons of bands and shows to choose from... but shit like this sells out making it impossible to see someone you truly love.

Ugh. Fucking $80-$100 per ticket on craigslist. Motherfuckers. I'm going to have to whore myself out to see him, aren't I?

Or you could just wait for the proper tour and battle with the Riv crowd, which will suck.

this sucks. i wanted so hard to give up on bright eyes, after the disappointing double album axl rose thing, and this ep makes it impossible. this is easily, easily the best work they've ever done as a whole. every song is excellent, and absolute 5 outta 5.

how the hell did he pull his head out of his own ass? did m. ward put him up to this?

as someone who's seen him twice (when I was really obsessed with him) on the I'm Wide Awake and the Digital Ash tour, it's really not that amazing and it occasionally gets boring. And I was a big fan.
Cocorosie opening was wonderful though.

i totally got a ticket and am totally going. color me excited to the Nth power. should be a fucking great. i've never seen Bright Eyes live. how is he? what should i expect?

He's good, but not always. He can be on and then you'll have a great show with energy and generally loyal to the studio version material, but he can also be off and you'll get a bit of a rushed, apathetic performance. Adequate and hardly unprofessional, but nothing special. Usually it's the former, though. You should have fun.

My only experience was at Bonnaroo last year and it was excellent. Here's the torrent if you're interested...

http://bt.etree.org/details.php?id=26446

oh awesome, thanks ryan.

just got in from the Metro show. Overall, pretty good. The band sounded pretty tight for the most part and Conor's voice really shined through the entire mix.

The how was primarily new songs, with three older ones sprinkled in ("Make War," "We are Nowhere, and it's Now," and "Old Soul Song."

The new ones were very country-tinged, and pretty good. A few of them definitely sound like solid winners. One that stuck out to me was "Soul Singer in a Session Band" (at least I am pretty sure that's the title...he didn't introduce it, but lyrically, it was heavy on mentioning 'soul singer'). Anyway, it definitely stood out to me.

The only downer was when they played through "Tourist Trap." It's probably my second favorite on the new EP, but it was a disaster live. It was them trudging through a tempoless mess. Ugh.

Oh yeah, and the crowd was downright obnoxious. Girls everywhere yelling "I LOVE YOU!" and this high dude next to my friend snapping his fingers during every song. Y'all can have fun seeing him at the Riv or whatever monstrous venue he comes to.

Wow, I never imagined you as a Bright Eyes fan. Did you wear a pretty dress to the show?

the LP hasn't leaked yet, has it?

or...do gillian welch or janet weiss play on the EP?

i just listened to bright eyes for the first time about a week or so ago (i'm wide awake....) i liked it more than i thought i would. he's still got some growing to do but hes definitely a talented dude.

The LP hasn't leaked. M. Ward is on the new EP, but that's it... I think?

Hey hey hey hey hey, you can go fuck yourself.


The LP didnt leak yet. Just the EP. I don't believe either are on the EP. Only M Ward who has a duet with Conor, which was coincidentally the only track from the EP that wasn't played tonight.

right on, didn't think so.

i'll wait till the LP leaks cause i have a love for gillian not unlike that of the girls at the show tonight.

Bright Eyes always has such obnoxious crowds. When I saw them at the Vic some douchebag kept yelling at Conor to dedicate a song for his unfortunate girlfriend, and it was a completely acoustic set, so it wasn't like the music could really drown him out. I seriously wanted to kill that mother fucker, and about half the crowd for less dramatic obnoxiousness.

...and that's the reason I'd never want to see him live again.