Articles tagged with alt-country

Conor Oberst

Matt Montgomery — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:56:06 +0000

Conor Oberst has been making music for longer than some Bright Eyes fans have been alive. In 1993, his debut release (on cassette, even) was released by Saddle Creek predecessor Lumberjack Records.

In some ways, this self-titled release isn't too much different than that first release, acoustic guitars leading the way. In most ways, it's quite different. Saying Oberst's music at 28 is more refined than it was at 13 hardly does either justice.

The Scenery Of Farewell

Alan Garner — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:25:28 +0000

This 5-track EP features a more stripped-back, acoustic side of Two Gallants, the San Franciscan indie rock duo named from a James Joyce short story in Dubliners. The Scenery of Farewell was released on Conor Oberst's Saddle Creek label, and the music certainly sounds like it's been influenced by Bright Eyes and the other alt-country staples of the Nebraskan label.

Thing Of The Past

David Coleman — Tue, 27 May 2008 17:06:38 +0000

Two years on from cult favourite To Find Me Gone, Vetiver is back with a new record, but it’s not exactly the record I was expecting. Andy Cabic’s loosely defined collective has never quite conformed to the new folk rules, frequently incorporating 70s West Coast rock and Brazilian influences into its sound, and this latest unexpected turn will undoubtedly prompt a few raised eyebrows.

So here’s the deal – Vetiver’s third album is a covers record.

Volume One

Brett Oronzio — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 18:58:48 +0000

When I first heard about the pairing of M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel my ears were raised, but with a variable amount of skepticism. Deschanel, after all, is every hipster's "it girl" of choice, but can she sing? Are her songs even any good? The doubts began to mount. M. Ward can always be relied upon to bring authenticity to his lo-fi folk music, making it devoid of any discernable timeframe, but will he change his methods to accommodate the young star?

Fox Confessor Brings the Flood

Peter Hayward — Wed, 12 Jul 2006 22:00:00 +0000

You know those comprehension tests: "hat is to head as glove is to...?", "Ben Affleck is to acting as shit is to...?", that sort of thing. Because, even in these post O' Brother times, the word "country" still scares some people, I am trying to come up with an analogous "Fox Confessor Brings the Flood is to country as X is to Y". Because, yes, while Neko Case's fifth album can definitely be described as country, it cannot be stressed how inappropriate genre-labels are for something so fucking brilliant.