On August 4
Conor Oberst will release his new self-titled solo album, which was recorded in Tepoztlán, Mexico with a small group of musicians at the dawn of this year. In a relatively similar fashion to our reassessment of the Manic Street Preachers’ back catalogue earlier this year, DiS considers how a barely pubescent Oberst traversed from four-track recordings in the basement of his family home to standing at the cusp of unleashing one of 2008’s most anticipated records.
Almost every song Oberst has recorded since he was but a wee one is out there somewhere if you look hard enough. The chance, then, to appreciate his growth and increasing range - from the very, very beginning - is there. What follows is intended as exhaustive to a point though by no means definitive; rather a loosely autobiographical reassessment of key works. If you care to join…