The People's Key
The People's Key is the eighth studio album by Bright Eyes, the Nebraska band of Conor Oberst, Mike Mogis, and Nate Walcott. The album was recorded in Omaha, NE at ARC Studios, produced by Mogis, and engineered by Mogis and Andy LeMaster. The album was released on February 15, 2011, Conor Oberst's birthday, on Saddle Creek Records.[15] Before then, it was streaming online in its entirety as part of NPR's "First Listen" series.[16]
The album features guest artists Andy LeMaster of Now It's Overhead, Matt Maginn of Cursive, Carla Azar of Autolux, Clark Baechle of The Faint, Shane Aspegren of The Berg Sans Nipple, Laura Burhenn of The Mynabirds, and Denny Brewer of Refried Ice Cream.[17] The lyrics make mention of Haile Selassie, the Lion of Judah and I and I, all things associated with Rastafari.
The first 50,000 copies of this album came with a limited-edition packaging similar to that of all copies of the LP record, in a 6-panel tri-fold die-cut digipak printed on iridescent foil, and including an O-card, full-color CD inner sleeve and a 20-page booklet.
Track listing
All songs written by Conor Oberst, except where noted.
| 1. |
"Firewall" |
7:16 |
| 2. |
"Shell Games" |
3:55 |
| 3. |
"Jejune Stars" |
4:10 |
| 4. |
"Approximate Sunlight" (Oberst, Nate Walcott) |
4:24 |
| 5. |
"Haile Selassie" |
4:33 |
| 6. |
"A Machine Spiritual (In the People's Key)" |
4:19 |
| 7. |
"Triple Spiral" |
3:51 |
| 8. |
"Beginner's Mind" |
3:55 |
| 9. |
"Ladder Song" |
3:58 |
| 10. |
"One for You, One for Me" |
6:37 |
|
Total length:
|
47:02 |
A limited edition deluxe packaging edition contains mp3 file samples of various Saddle Creek artists.
Reception
The People's Key has received mixed to positive critical reception. Allmusic praised its smaller scale and gave the album 3 and a 1/2 out of 5 stars. Pitchfork gave the album 5 out of 10 and criticized the 'impersonal' feel of the songs, yet praised "Ladder Song". Slant Magazine gave the album 2 out of a possible 5 stars. No Ripcord gave the album a 60 and commented, "There's not a lot fundamentally wrong with The People's Key; it's just that we know Bright Eyes can do better." However, Drowned In Sound and NME gave the album 9 out of 10 and 8 out of 10 respectively, with NME calling it a "sleek electro-tinged classic" and praising Oberst's more electric musical direction, saying it brought a "fresh strain of Bright Eyes record". The album debuted at number 13 on the Billboard 200, and made it to number 7 on the Alternative Albums chart. The People's Key also reached number 46 on the UK Albums Chart.
Charts and certifications
Personnel
- Conor Oberst - Vocals (1-10), Electric Guitar (1, 3, 5, 7), Acoustic Guitar (6, 8), Piano (2, 9), Keyboards (4, 10)
- Mike Mogis - Electric Guitar (2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8), Pedal Steel (1, 4), Sound Effects (1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10), Programming (1, 2, 4, 6, 10), Percussion (4, 6)
- Nate Walcott - Synthesizers (2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10), Piano (8), Organ (3, 6, 7, 10), Mellotron (1, 4)
- Andy LeMaster - Backing Vocals (1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8), Electric Guitar (4, 10), Bass (10)
- Matt Maginn - Bass (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
- Carla Azar - Drums, Percussion (2, 6, 8)
- Clark Baechle - Drums (1, 3, 4, 5, 7)
- Shane Asperegen - Drums (3, 10), Percussion (2)
- Laura Burhenn - Backing Vocals (4, 7, 8)
- Denny Brewer - Shamanic Vocals (1, 3, 6, 10)
References
- ^ Allmusic Review
- ^ BBC review
- ^ BLARE Review
- ^ Consequence of Sound review
- ^ Drowned in Sound review
- ^ Bright Eyes – Album Review: Bright Eyes – The People's Key (Polydor)
- ^ One Thirty BPM review
- ^ Paste review
- ^ Pitchfork review
- ^ Popmatters review
- ^ Rolling Stone review
- ^ SPIN review
- ^ Sputnikmusic review
- ^ Tiny Mix Tapes review
- ^ Breihan, Tom. "Bright Eyes Return With New Album", Pitchfork Media, November 30, 2010, accessed November 30, 2010.
- ^ NPR. "NPR First Listen: Bright Eyes — The People's Key", NPR, January 31, 2011, accessed January 31, 2011.
- ^ Smith, Bethany. "Bright Eyes’ releasing The People’s Key February 2011", Popwreckoning, November 30, 2010, accessed November 30, 2010.
- ^ "Chartifacts - Week Commencing: 28th February 2011". Australian Recording Industry Association. February 28, 2011. Archived from the original on March 1, 2011. http://www.webcitation.org/5wsBGTGsH. Retrieved March 3, 2011.
External links
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Studio albums |
|
|
| Other albums |
|
|
| Singles and EPs |
|
|
| Conor Oberst solo |
|
|
| Related articles |
|
|