On a gorgeous night in Hollywood, I trekked down to The Wiltern to witness the magic of Bright Eyes for the first time. They did not disappoint. Neither did the trip down where a young lady said I had pretty eyes and a woman got stuck in the subway doors as it started moving. She was fine.
I should get something off my chest first. I’ve always enjoyed Bright Eyes, but I wouldn’t necessarily say I was a fan. Not that I don’t like them, quite the opposite, I just never took a deep dive into their catalog. I know the songs that everyone knows, and they didn’t do any of those. Ah and there lies the testament of a great band. I didn’t care.
The show opened with the new to me Christopher Owens, 
who was a guy with a guitar and the only thing that this guy likes more than a guy with a guitar is a sad girl with one so I was sold pretty much instantly. He kicked off with a cover of Simon and Garfunkel’s America (his own America would come later), and closed with a cover of Charlie Chaplin’s Smile.
America (Simon & Garfunkel)
Always On My Mind (Wayne Carson)
No Good
White Flag
Beautiful Horses
America
I Think About Heaven
Smile (Charlie Chaplin)
I always love being introduced to new artists which is why I am never late to concerts, a notorious insane trait of LA audiences, and Christopher did not disappoint. He sounded great and the songs, while mellow, were really terrific. Definitely a good way to start off the show.
It was just a short break later before Bright Eyes took the stage and they were fantastic. Like I said earlier, I didn’t know a lot of the songs as a casual listener and I wouldn’t be shocked if someone told me they did a ton of hugely popular songs that I just didn’t recognize. The crowd sure seemed to! Six of the 22 song set came from the band’s latest album “Five Dice, All Threes.” I can’t think of a single song that I shrugged at. It was a 10 from the first note for me.
My lack of knowledge did not take away from my sense of enjoyment though. It was an incredible show. Conor Oberst took the stage and owned it the entire night. He sounded flawless. The band gelled and the vibe was immaculate.
The best kind of concert for me, is a show where I walk out of the venue and hit play on more music from the band I just saw, even better if I walk out a bigger fan than when I entered. That is certainly the case with Bright Eyes. I questioned why I never got the fever of this band over the years, but damn I am glad to have caught it now.
Bright Eyes currently has tour dates scheduled through July! Get your tickets and go enjoy a terrific night of amazing music.
Find more tour dates at ThisIsBrightEyes.com
Bells and Whistles
El Capitan
We Are Nowhere and It’s Now
Method Acting
Bas Jan Ader
Mariana Trench
Old Soul Song (for the New World Order)
Real Feel 105°
First Day of My Life
Take It Easy (Love Nothing)
Spring Cleaning
Shell Games
Happy Accident
Tiny Suicides
Rainbow Overpass
Devil Town (Daniel Johnston cover)
Poison Oak
Road to Joy
One for You, One for Me
Encore:
June on the West Coast
The Calendar Hung Itself…
Let’s Not Shit Ourselves (to Love and to Be Loved)
Garon Cockrell is the Founder and Editor of Pop Culture Beast and host of The Pop Culture Beast Show. He founded the site over seven years ago to have a place on the internet to write about the things he loved. Since then, Garon has become a best-selling author (Demonic and Other Tales), an award winning screenwriter (Best Screenplay 2013 Motor City Nightmares Film Festival), and a cast member on the top rated podcast, Never Not Funny.