The hallowed halls of Manchester’s Albert Hall are due to be graced by the three-piece indie folk/rock outfit Bright Eyes on this year’s summer solstice, June 21st. Made up by Conor Oberst’s raw, gut-wrenching vocals and the multi-instrumentalist talents of Mike Mogis and Nate Walcott, the group have garnered a solid reputation for their emotional resonance, earning them serious indie credibility. Their romanticization of sadness made them a huge hit among the melancholy teenagers of the noughties, and their 2005 album I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning was carried by Oberst’s voice, as vulnerable as it is strong.
As the light from the longest day of the year will lengthen through the Hall’s stained glass, Bright Eyes’ tour will continue for their new and elusive album, Five Dice, All Threes. Everything that is endearing and intriguing about this group is back in tenfold with this album. Timeless and fearless, listeners will still feel the same gut twisting grab with this new project as they did when hearing their 2002 album opener ‘The Big Picture’. When peering down from Albert Hall’s mezzanine on those stiff, wooden benches, audiences can expect to be mesmerised and moved by Oberst’s urgency and burning presence.
There truly cannot be a better time to see this band: on a solstice in an incredibly intimate yet grand venue after nearly three decades together. Their sound is bound to be rooted in nostalgia yet will flourish into something that is as grounded as it is experimental. With songs that provide answers as well as questions, the evening is bound to be cathartic, otherworldly and pretty special. The concert is presented by SJM, and tickets are available through See Tickets on Albert Hall’s website.
