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Only 27, yet already on his seventh album as Bright Eyes; there's no denying that Connor Oberst is productive. His earlier work tended to split people into two quite distinct camps: for everyone who felt an album like Fevers and Mirrors was 'heartfelt', you'd find someone else who would quite firmly declare it, well, 'whiny'.
On the strength of his more recent recorded output Oberst has been picking up comparisons to such songwriting giants as Springsteen and Dylan. On listening to Hot Knives, however, its clear they're referring to Springsteen and Dylan, circa 2000: in essence, musically conservative elder rockers, aware that their best days have come and gone. For Oberst has grown up way too fast: if this is the sound of maturity, I'll have a double helping of whiny, please.
Am I being unfair? A little: there's nothing wrong with either Hot Knives or If The Brakeman Turns My Way, although I'd take Hot Knives upbeat orchestral country-rock over Brakeman's rather maudlin navel-gazing anyday. It's just that it's utterly unremarkable, and I'm left wondering if the strain of having to grow up so publically has influenced Oberst's musical development for the worse.
PS: did you know that if Connor joined the German army and reached the rank of Colonel, he'd be adressed as Oberst Oberst? Well, it kept me awake.
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