Last night Conor Oberst brought his current solo tour (in between his dates with Better Oblivion Community Center) for a sold out performance in Jersey City, New Jersey at White Eagle Hall.
It was a scorching hot day out, one that Oberst jokingly talked about not being able to breathe while being in New Jersey. He said that the night would see him and his 4-piece backing band try out some “weird old songs” that saw him tackle older tracks from his Bright Eyes catalog instead of the expected favorites that fans may have traditionally been expecting. We got tracks like “Bowl of Oranges,” “Motion Sickness” and “If the Brakeman Turns My Way,” along with some of his newer solo material and his cover of Waylon Jennings’ “If You See Me Getting Smaller.”
It was great to see Oberst having fun and cutting loose, with a razor-sharp band behind him playing in a room like White Eagle Hall, smaller than the typical space that you’d expect to find him in. The sold out room at White Eagle Hall responded well to every song he played and new the words to seemingly every single song, old or new.
Opening the show was Joanna Sternberg, who just put out their debut album Then I Try Some More via Team Love Records, the label founded by Conor Oberst and Nate Krenkel.
Find photos from both performances posted in the gallery below, along with Oberst’s setlist.
Joanna Sternberg:
Conor Oberst:
Conor Oberst setlist:
1. I Won’t Ever Be Happy Again (Bright Eyes song)
2. The Trees Get Wheeled Away (Bright Eyes song)
3. Hundreds of Ways
4. Motion Sickness (Bright Eyes song)
5. Time Forgot
6. Salutations
7. Bowl of Oranges (Bright Eyes song)
8. Empty Hotel by the Sea
9. No One Would Riot for Less (Bright Eyes song)
10. Blue Angels Air Show (Bright Eyes song)
11. Desert Island Questionnaire
12. Tachycardia
13. Till St. Dymphna Kicks Us Out
Encore:
14. If You See Me Getting Smaller (Waylon Jennings cover)
15. If the Brakeman Turns My Way (Bright Eyes song)
16. Napalm
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