Photo:
Andy Warhol selected fifteen minutes as the time-period to indicate 'fleeting'. This is how long Gigwise has with Bright Eyes front-man Conor Oberst. He should understand that we can't dilly-dally, for he can famously chronicle the passing of time with the skill of Proust...
"The arc of time. The stench of sex. The innocence you can't protect. Each quarter note. Each marble step" -'I Believe In Symmetry'
Gigwise meets Conor Oberst in a sparsely furnished room in Oxford. Think of it as a friendly interrogation. We start off with the issue that has possibly secured Bright Eyes more column inches than anything else – the fact that Mr Oberst has strongly refused to play in a Clear Channel venue. Of course, they also own many radio stations and billboards. You might remember Clear Channel's refusal to play The Dixie Chicks on the radio, after that band criticised George W. Bush. Who said McCarthyism was over? Have Bright Eyes suffered any consequences?
"We're kind of in a unique situation; we don't really get much radio play anyway, so it's not a big deal to us"
Thankfully, the tolerant airwaves of the UK have been broadcasting Bright Eyes new single 'Four Winds' a hell of a lot more than our counterparts over the Atlantic. A song that boasts such brilliant lines as "The squatters made a mural of a Mexican girl with fifteen cans of spray paint in a chemical swirl," we naturally ask if Conor get a buzz from his art?
"Music I think, you know for me anyway, I enjoy it to the point where I think endorphins or something in my brain's kicking off, you know? I feel kinda high when I'm playing music and enjoy it. It kind of depends on everything, you know? For me to feel really euphoric, a lot of variables have to come alive, like the band and, I guess the audience and the venue and my own mood, I suppose. Everything just to get that special vibe going on, you know? That's always the goal"
'Four Winds' is lifted from the new album 'Cassadaga', which Conor informs us is a place "in sort of central Florida". There was a kafuffle in Florida a while ago, Oberst possibly refers to it on 'Let's Not Shit Ourselves', mentioning a certain "Cowboy President". Anyway, Cassadaga, Florida...
"A friend of mine, this girl Rain, she told me about it a couple years ago and she lives in Gainesville, nearby and so it sounded immediately interesting to me, 'cause it's a real small town but has you know, a really high population of psychics and mediums and it was fascinating, so I thought about it or daydreamed about it for about a year, really wanted to go and finally I got a chance. I went down and met her in Gainesville and drove out. My own little pilgrimage and we went and saw a woman that she had seen in the past and really had a good experience with.
He continues: “It's like in the middle of town, there's a hotel and then a bookstore. You go into the bookstore and there'll be a board that day with whoever's working and their phone number. Just call them up and say come around 2 O'clock or whatever and you walk down the little streets and there's all the little houses and they've all converted their front rooms into reading parlours and you go in and get your fortune told. You have your reading and so I went to see this specific woman, had a pretty amazing experience and just left with a sense of peace. The record's not a concept record about the town. I was just there a couple days. It's more just the feeling that I left there with and then also I just like the sound of the word"
What about that line in 'Four Winds' - "All the way to Cassadaga to commune with the dead"?
“There's definitely mediums that do that (Commune with the dead). I'm always looking for a way to peek behind the curtain"
Spooky, let's go to the other side of America. Bright Eyes recorded some of Cassadaga in Portland, Oregon. How come it's such a band magnet?
"Janet Weiss and M. Ward live there. He's not here tonight, but his drummer (is), this woman, Rachel lives in Portland. She's amazing, too. (Portland's) A really vibrant music scene, you know. There's some venues there, Crystal Ballroom's nice and Roseland, several venues, but yeah, bands and I know friends there, you know obviously Modest Mouse, Shins, Stephen Malkmus and Britt (Daniel)"
Oberst has recorded with Britt, Weiss and M. Ward. The Bright Eyes revolving door line-up policy must make Conor dizzy. Who's next? "I'd love to get ?uestlove (from hip-hop band The Roots) to play drums with us. That's kinda on my wish-list for the next record. That'd be cool"
While we're vaguely on the subject of hip-hop, 1xtra was broadcasting live from a club last night and the MC said "The ladies are looking crisp, trust me". Had to take his word for it, because there was only the usual scrolling text on the digital radio screen, not 'crisp' ladies. Anyway, they played Ludacris' 'Move Bitch', which features on 'Skins', as does Bright Eyes 'First Day Of My life'...
"I didn't even know about that. It's a TV show? What's it about?"
We won't spoil it for you, but Conor is explained the context in which his song is used, to which he responds...
"Cold. That's wild"
So how do you decide who uses your songs?
"We normally approve everything"
Even adverts?
"We've never been in any kind of advertising, no. We've had some offers, but never really felt like it. who's to say, someday, (mock-mafia voice) if I need the money."
Let's get onto something more noble. Sufjan Stevens studied writing and named a song after Nobel winner Saul Bellow. Win Butler studied writing and named Arcade Fire's album after Pulitzer winner John Kennedy Toole's book. Conor mentioned Don De Lillo in 'Gold Mine Gutted'. Who else can you recommend, Conor?
"One of my favourite authors, modern American authors, there's this guy Denis Johnson. He writes short stories and poetry and novels"
Not the recently deceased, three time NBA championship winning basketball player Dennis Johnson, then. What about that other Johnston, Daniel Johnston? Bright Eyes covered his 'Devil Town'. Did you ever meet him?
"I played with him in Atlanta. It was really interesting. He's amazing, just kind of you never know what you're gonna get (not in a Forrest Gump accent), depending on what day you catch him on. He didn't play many songs, but the ones he played were great. It was cool"
At this point, the PR person indicates that we have two minutes, by flicking a peace sign. What about the war-starting Cowboy President, then?
"It's just depressing" Conor articulates his impotence physically, crunching up a piece of paper and throwing it into the far-away waste-basket. Basketball player Dennis Johnson would have been proud of that shot. It's probably what Conor would like to do to Bush.
Swiftly changing the subject, let's finish on a nice note. Conor recently signed Gruff Rhys from Super Furry Animals to his Team Love record label. "They're great" he’s quick to exclaim. We point out that Gruff's 'Skylon!' is set on a crashing plane, like Bright Eyes 'At The Bottom Of Everything'... "I'm definitely influenced by Gruff, for sure"
Come now, your song was first, don't be modest...
"That's what's great about music. It's all exchanges and comes back around and runs together, you know? So I'm always being influenced by music I hear, so if I ever can do that with someone else, then I'm stoked."
