brighteyesboston

a review of Bright Eyes in Boston - "Conor Outburst"

Bright Eyes @ the Want Center in Boston – May 24, 2007 (CRED)
Bright Eyes Boston

Speaking of Bright Eyes kicking off 7 NYC nights tonight, here’s a review of Bright Eyes‘ show last night in Boston by first-time BV-contributor “Filthy McMuffin”…….

CONOR OUTBURST

Bright Eyes
May 24, 2007
Wang Center, Boston, MA

Bright Eyes had every luxury available to them heading into Thursday’s show at the Wang Center in Boston, MA: a sold-out crowd, perfect acoustics, and a full band that included a string quartet, two horn players, two drummers, a vibraphonist, and a keyboardist (in addition to founding members Conor Oberst, Mike Mogis, and Nate Walcott). Unfortunately, they seemed unprepared and unable to reach the sonic expectations that accompany such a venue and group of players. For the most part, the arrangements sounded disjointed and ill-conceived. There were a few exceptions (“Make A Plan To Love Me,” “Four Winds”) where the instrumentation complemented the songs well and it really worked (mostly due to the songs’ structural simplicity). But for most of the night it felt like the crowd was on hand for a trial-and-error practice, like watching a minor league team in a major league setting. Perhaps the band should have focused more on the music and less on their outfits (everyone was decked out in white suits and white dresses, which Oberst glibly attributed to their being born again as “second virgins.”) To close the night, an apparently inebriated Oberst started smashing all his instruments and the whole stage ended up being trashed to the tune of deafeningly loud guitar feedback. While it may have been fun for the 27-year-old Oberst, his actions came across as immature histrionics, which is the Achilles heel that he has faced throughout his career. Considering the sonic quality and powerful songwriting contained on Bright Eyes‘ latest record Cassadaga, it was a shame to see all the musical, visual, and acoustic luxuries go to waste.

-Filthy

elsewhere: TMNT butt, Conor Oberst, & Molly Ringwald + an article in the NY Times.

Previously
* Bright Eyes kicking off 7 nights in NYC tonight

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