I was 13, a year into teenagehood, past the ripeness of 12 and not yet the comfortableness of 15 when I had first heard of Bright Eyes. I was reading a sister-owned dog-eared copy of Memoirs of A Teenage Amnesiac (one of my favourite books to date) by Gabrielle Zevin. And it was through the character of William Landsman, I was introduced to the world of maroon smoking jackets, yearbook best friends and mixtapes.
Conor Oberst, lead singer, arguably whiny, somewhat pretentious ( a bit like me ) was the voice of the band that helped shape my entire teenage years and thus shape who I am today. I have always viewed my teenage years to be in three parts, dictated by the albums I had listened to.
13,14 : I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning happy, naive, innocent.
14,15,16 : Fevers and Mirrors a period I describe as Teen Angst.
17 : The Story Is In The Soil, Keep Your Ear To The Ground. acceptance and growth.
It almost seems like Bright Eyes and Oberst creep up on me. I was watching a film at night, with my older sisters, as per usual, watching films late at night is a tradition in our sisterhood. The soundtrack consisted of Bright Eyes/ Conor Oberst with the other occasional indie band. Stuck In Love was a gorgeously sad film with a gorgeously sad soundtrack and gorgeously sad is the best way to describe Conor’s voice.
I guess you could argue, I’m not a Real Fan, I haven’t listened to every single song, every single album or watched every single interview. However, Bright Eyes is a band I have grown with and will always continue to grow with despite them not really making music anymore (boo) and so, every new* song I listen to, or new album is a stepping stone to my own personal growth.
A Heart's A Heavy Burden. 