The second full-length release from Omaha wunderkind Conor Oberst is a fascinating coming of age for a singer/songwriter whose respectability is chiseled in stone through his musical abilities.
This ten-track outing is a lo-fi bonanza of heartfelt tunes that features musical contributions from members of such critically acclaimed groups as Neutral Milk Hotel, Of Montreal, and Lullaby for the Working Class.
Special guests aside, it is Oberst's acoustic guitar and wavering emotional vocals that turn songs like the opening "If Winter Ends" into fragile masterpieces.
There are also full-on rock numbers like "The City Has Sex" that help to push the envelope, and others like the Dylan-esque "June on the West Coast" that showcase the one-man band aspect of Bright Eyes.
Letting Off the Happiness is a powerful record that manages to stay believable in light of the tortured emotions it tries to convey.
It was recorded before Oberst was even out of his teens, but he shows the maturity of a songwriter who has seen it all, and for that he deserves respect and maybe a bit of incredulous inspection.
This is a powerful record that has the ability to reach inside and identify with the listener, and while Bright Eyes went on to release some better-sounding and slightly more mature records, this one has the raw power to make people really stand up and notice.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | If Winter Ends | Bright Eyes | Play | 03:25 | 7 MB | 20 MB |
| 2 | Padraic My Prince | Bright Eyes | Play | 03:48 | 8 MB | 26 MB |
| 3 | Contrast and Compare | Bright Eyes | Play | 03:57 | 9 MB | 25 MB |
| 4 | The City Has Sex | Bright Eyes | Play | 02:11 | 5 MB | 16 MB |
| 5 | The Difference in the Shades | Bright Eyes | Play | 04:23 | 10 MB | 30 MB |
| 6 | Touch | Bright Eyes | Play | 03:42 | 8 MB | 26 MB |
| 7 | June on the West Coast | Bright Eyes | Play | 03:34 | 8 MB | 22 MB |
| 8 | Pull My Hair | Bright Eyes | Play | 04:10 | 9 MB | 29 MB |
| 9 | A Poetic Retelling of an Unfortunate Seduction | Bright Eyes | Play | 04:24 | 10 MB | 29 MB |
| 10 | Tereza and Tomas | Bright Eyes | Play | 25:46 | 59 MB | 111 MB |
| 59 mins | 135 MB | |||||
| 59 mins | 338 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jeremy Barnes | Drums, Percussion, Sound Effects |
| 2 | Kevin Barnes | Keyboards, Vocals (Background) |
| 3 | Bright Eyes | Drums, Drums (Electric), Guitar, Keyboards, Liner Notes, Piano, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 4 | Aaron Druery | E-Bow |
| 5 | Neely Jenkins | Vocals |
| 6 | Andy LeMaster | Bass, Engineer, Guitar, Percussion, Vocals |
| 7 | Matt Maginn | Bass |
| 8 | Mike Mogis | Chimes, Drums (Electric), Engineer, Guitar, Keyboards, Mastering, Melodica, Mixing, Multi Instruments, Organ, Pedal Steel, Piano, Sound Effects |
| 9 | Robb Nansel | Finger Cymbals |
| 10 | Ted Stevens | Drums |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |