Fevers and Mirrors
| Fevers and Mirrors | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Bright Eyes | ||||
| Released | May 29, 2000 (US) | |||
| Recorded | 1999, Presto! Recording Studio, Lincoln, Nebraska | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 55:10 | |||
| Label |
Saddle Creek (US) LBJ-32 Wichita Recordings (UK) | |||
| Producer | Mike Mogis | |||
| Bright Eyes chronology | ||||
| ||||
Fevers and Mirrors is the third album by the Nebraska indie band Bright Eyes, recorded in 1999 and released on May 29, 2000. It was the 32nd release of the Omaha, Nebraska-based record label Saddle Creek Records. The album was released later in 2000 in the United Kingdom as the inaugural release from Wichita Recordings.[1]
The album begins with a recording of a little boy reading Mitchell Is Moving, a book by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat. "An Attempt to Tip the Scales" includes what is ostensibly an interview with the band's frontman, Conor Oberst. However, Oberst has admitted that the interview was something of a joke, intended to poke fun at the dark tone of the album. Conor's voice is impersonated in the interview by Todd Fink of The Faint and Commander Venus. The man interviewing is Matt Silcock, a former member of Lullaby for the Working Class.[2]
This album was included in Bright Eyes' Vinyl Box Set.
Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [3] |
| NME | 7/10[4] |
| Pitchfork Media | 9.0/10[5] |
The music online magazine Pitchfork Media placed Fevers and Mirrors at number 170 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s[6] despite a low initial score of 5.4/10. In 2012, Pitchfork Media's Ian Cohen gave the reissued version of the album a 9.0 out of 10.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "A Spindle, a Darkness, a Fever, and a Necklace" | 6:28 |
| 2. | "A Scale, a Mirror and Those Indifferent Clocks" | 2:44 |
| 3. | "The Calendar Hung Itself..." | 3:55 |
| 4. | "Something Vague" | 3:33 |
| 5. | "The Movement of a Hand" | 4:02 |
| 6. | "Arienette" | 3:45 |
| 7. | "When the Curious Girl Realizes She Is Under Glass" | 2:40 |
| 8. | "Haligh, Haligh, a Lie, Haligh" | 4:43 |
| 9. | "The Center of the World" | 4:43 |
| 10. | "Sunrise, Sunset" | 4:32 |
| 11. | "An Attempt to Tip the Scales" | 8:29 |
| 12. | "A Song to Pass the Time" | 5:30 |
| Total length: | 55:10 | |
| Japanese edition / Vinyl box set track listing | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 1. | "A Spindle, a Darkness, a Fever, and a Necklace" | 6:28 |
| 2. | "A Scale, a Mirror, and Those Indifferent Clocks" | 2:44 |
| 3. | "The Calendar Hung Itself..." | 3:55 |
| 4. | "Something Vague" | 3:33 |
| 5. | "The Joy in Discovery" | 2:44 |
| 6. | "The Movement of a Hand" | 4:02 |
| 7. | "Arienette" | 3:45 |
| 8. | "When the Curious Girl Realizes She Is Under Glass" | 2:40 |
| 9. | "Jetsabel Removes the Undesirables" | 6:09 |
| 10. | "Haligh, Haligh, a Lie, Haligh" | 4:43 |
| 11. | "The Center of the World" | 4:43 |
| 12. | "Sunrise, Sunset" | 4:32 |
| 13. | "An Attempt to Tip the Scales" | 8:29 |
| 14. | "A Song to Pass the Time" | 5:30 |
| Total length: | 63:57 | |
Personnel
- Conor Oberst – vocals, guitar (1, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11), sample (1), organ (2), Rhodes (5), keyboards (5, 12), piano (7), tremolo guitar (9), percussion (11), toy piano (12)
- Mike Mogis – electric guitar (4, 9), pedal steel (6, 8), vibraphone (1, 8), tambourine (6, 8), glockenspiel (1), piano (1), Ebow pedal steel (2), electronics (2, 9), tongue drum (3), guiro (3), lap dulcimer (4), hammered dulcimer (5), atmosphere (7), acoustic guitar intro (9), organ (9), mandolin (10), keyboards (10), sample (11), percussion (11)
- Todd Baechle – keyboards (3)
- Tim Kasher – accordion (1, 4, 6)
- Joe Knapp – drums (2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10), percussion (3), vocals (8)
- Jiha Lee – flute (2, 4, 10), vocals (5)
- Andy LeMaster – guitar (3), percussion (3, 6, 11), Mellotron (5, 6), bass (2, 5, 10), electric guitar (9), vocals (9, 10, 11), keyboards (11)
- Matt Maginn – bass (3, 4, 6, 8, 9)
- A.J. Mogis – piano (2), Rhodes (9)
- Clint Schnase – drums (2, 5)
References
- ↑ Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Bright Eyes Help Wichita Celebrate 10th Anniversary | News | Pitchfork
- ↑ Phillips, Amy (April 2005). "KittyMagik.com Interview". Archived from the original on June 8, 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-16.
- ↑ Allmusic Review
- ↑ NME Review
- ↑ Pitchfork Media Review
- ↑ Pitchfork staff (September 28, 2009). "The Top 200 Albums of the 2000s: 200-151". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved October 1, 2009.