Bright Eyes - Royal Albert Hall, London - 23rd June 2011 (Live Review)
Monday, 04 July 2011
Written by Ben Bland
Conor Oberst has become the poster boy for a generation, whether he likes it or not. For the sensitive teenager who yearned for escape in the early 21st century there was no better voice than Oberst and his Bright Eyes project. Nobody else had quite the knack for saying what you wanted to say about the girl you liked but were too scared to talk to and nobody else could express their disdain for the rampant consumerism and lack of care embodying contemporary society. Of course, this is all fairly inaccurate because lots of people write brilliant love songs and Oberst isn’t the most subtle singer of ‘protest songs’. What Oberst has done under the Bright Eyes moniker though, and this is beyond doubt, is bring simple folk music to a lot of young people who would never have listened to anything remotely similar otherwise. He has an earnest appeal that puts him head and shoulders above most of his contemporaries. Predictably, comparisons with Dylan have been frequent throughout his career and, in many ways such comparisons are becoming more valid over time. After all Oberst has expressed his desire to escape his past work under the Bright Eyes moniker and comes to the Royal Albert Hall having released a recent album that is largely led by electric guitars and keyboards rather than soft acoustic strums.
Sadly, Oberst hasn’t found a 'Highway 61 Revisited' within himself. His attempts at electronic dominated songwriting floundered on 2005’s 'Digital Ash in a Digital Urn', especially in comparison with the same year’s stone cold folk led classic 'I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning'.
This year’s 'The People’s Key' was far better than 'Digital Ash' but still lacks some of Bright Eyes’ old charm. The simple fact is that many of Bright Eyes’ attempts at indie rock fall rather flat at the Royal Albert Hall, causing some rather major problems with momentum. The sound is, as always at this most prestigious of venues, the best it could be. The visuals are somewhat superfluous to the mix. The songs should always be what makes a Bright Eyes show truly special but the likes of 'Shell Games' and 'Jejune Stars' aren’t really special songs. They show Oberst trying to achieve something under the Bright Eyes name that he perhaps doesn’t yet have the skills to truly achieve. The performances of Oberst and his band members (all six of them, including two drummers) are out of the top drawer but until about halfway through the show things are slow moving and largely disappointing.
It’s the double header of 2007 b-side 'Cartoon Blues' and 'Lover I Don’t Have to Love', from 2002’s 'Lifted or The Story Is in the Soil, Keep Your Ear to the Ground' that get things going and from this point onwards, Oberst and company are unstoppable. 'Poison Oak' and 'Another Travelin’ Song' prompt rousing singalongs from the dedicated throng of fans whilst main set closer 'Ladder Song' is so wonderfully delicate, being based almost solely around Oberst at the piano, that it absorbs the whole venue in its glorious simplicity.
The reaction to 'Landlocked Blues' when it is unveiled to start the encore is one of rapture. In many ways Oberst’s purest anthem, 'Landlocked Blues' has everything that much of Bright Eyes’ forays into rock and electronica lack. Most importantly it has heart, lots of it. 'Road to Joy' sees the band doing angry well, thrashing at their instruments during the climax after Oberst’s demand to ‘fuck it up boys, make some noise!’
Closer 'One for You, One for Me' is, suitably, the best thing Oberst has done in the electronic direction in which he has recently headed. Although refraining from diving into the crowd, Oberst goes as far as to climb into some of the closest seats to high five and hug individual audience members. The song’s approach is one that makes everyone in the Royal Albert Hall feel like they are part of something wonderful and triumphant. In fact, in many ways, this show is a triumph eventually, even if it takes far too long to get there.
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Sadly, Oberst hasn’t found a 'Highway 61 Revisited' within himself. His attempts at electronic dominated songwriting floundered on 2005’s 'Digital Ash in a Digital Urn', especially in comparison with the same year’s stone cold folk led classic 'I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning'. 
