can you do it for me?
Admission: I’ve never really listened to much Bob Dylan. Of course I’ve heard a ton of Bob Dylan, but I’ve never really listened to what people really admire about him…mainly his poetry. It’s not that I resist his importance to the music world, but I just never exposed myself to his stuff the way I should.
I’ve never really listened to Bright Eyes. It seems his influence over the world of particularly emotional indie types really made itself apparent towards the end of my obsession with particularly emotional indie type music. My take was always that he was overly mopey and a lyrical master wannabe. Of course, I say that having heard maybe one of his songs and ignoring it.
Okay, those two paragraphs are written and now I will proceed to listen to both of these albums for the first time. I will admit, there’s little hope for Bright Eyes, because I’ve always told myself if I really dug into Bob Dylan, I’d find what everyone else has always loved him for. But I make this vow: I will give Bright Eyes his fair shake. I hope to be pleasantly surprised. Here goes something…
My first reaction is that I am listening to two artists with very distinct voices. That’s the similarity. The difference is that Conor Oberst’s voice seems to be quite manufactured. His poetry, which seems quite forced, gets lost in the fact that he is, at least in my estimation, singing earnestly to convince us that he is earnest. Dylan, on the other hand, simply seems to be singing from his gut without regard for what we might think.
Dear Bright Eyes, Is that Emmylou on track 2? What a way to show that you don’t have real chops.
Another reaction…I listened with anticipation for each song on Blood on the Tracks. I listened for the poetry. For the almost anthem like calls…
I wanted the Bright Eyes album to be over mid-way through track three. I don’t know. I think I just hate it. The instrumentation, while skillfully played, is just kind of too smooth, or boring. It doesn’t match that (false) earnestness with which Oberst is singing. I just don’t know why I’m supposed to care about what he moaning into my earphones.
Can you see where this is going? I don’t think I need to write any more, really.
Blood on the Tracks y’all.
