I must have been slacking in my fandom. Despite my avid love for all things Conor in years past, it somehow got past me until today that 2008 will bring a Conor Oberst solo album with a group of musicians known as the Mystic Valley Band. So far as I can tell, this is just a group of musicians/friends (including Jason Boesel of Rilo Kiley, another long time favorite of mine) assembled to back Oberst for this record.
My first reaction was “What? Why does Conor Oberst need a solo album? Isn’t Bright Eyes just him and a rotating group of musicians/friends anyway?”
But then I YouTubed the video they have of them making the record. It’s 8 minutes of shakey-cam video footage and background music and voices. About three minutes in “NYC – Gone, Gone” (to be track 9 on the album) happens, and it’s awesome. At this point in the video, Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band are seen climbing a mountain, presumably in Mexico where they recorded the album. And part of me went back to being 19 years old and in lustful awe of skinny indie rockers. Conor Oberst is still great, and dude can do what he wants. And really, anyone creating shit has to do so on their own terms – maybe he’s in a place where he’s doing something a little different. Maybe it’s the first time he feels that his material is worthy enough to carry an album with his own name.
Either way, finally, for the first time, www.conoroberst.com exists. So now, the 18 year old fangirls have a place to go with their indie rock crush’s name, which I never had. Cool.
Anyway. Getting on with my post-graduation media intake, only because last time I neglected to mention the reading material I’ve been blowing through.
But first – a revisit to Ghost World. Because that’s how I feel, graduated, living at home, single and jobless. Because this is what everyone feels like after graduating from anything.
I also wanted to watch this after reading the Daniel Clowes graphic novel by the same name. I was surprised – they’re so similar in feel and theme and like, particular specifics, but pretty different, so far as major plot points.
I’ve been making my way through the library’s graphic novel section. My goal is to get my life moving before I can make my way through the whole thing. Now this is a pretty major library in my city, and it has a pretty impressive section. We’ll see, I guess.
Anyway. My Clowes selections, besides Ghost World have included Pussey! and David Boring, the latter of which has been the best. It’s artistically and structurally similar to Like A Velvet Glove Cast in Iron which was the only Clowes I’ve ever read, and was similar to a Lynchian mystery. David Boring was less crazy than LAVGC, but still had its strengths. I was less crazy about Pussey! But whatever.
Other graphic novels so far:
At the beginning of the summer I read three books by Jeffrey Brown, which were pretty good.
Stuck Rubber Baby by Howard Cruse – It’s like if Maus were about the civil rights movement instead of the Holocaust. And with people instead of animals. So maybe not like Maus at all.
Leap Years by Ian Bennett – This was kind of dumb. I think it was geared more toward a high school demographic. Oh, well.
A book of Forlorn Funnies by Paul Hornschemeir – I really liked this, and I will definitely be checking out more stuff by this guy. It was basically this book full of mini comics that were a great combination of bizarre, cute, political and touching.
Anyway. Other reading material:
Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by Z.Z. Packer and Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison – I’ve been on a Black lit kick since college, which is basically what got me excited about reading again. This is probably not the last of the “books reccommended by Oprah but seriously are really good, not just for people who like Oprah” phase that I’m going through. Because seriously. Toni Morrison is sick as hell.
Mitchell is Moving by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat – I looked up this book because a reading from it is sampled in a Bright Eyes song, but I checked it out and took it home because it was actually adorable and kind of sentimental. It’s about moving on and friendship and love, and all of those things are relevant.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon – I enjoyed this book, although I think it’s probably overrated. It’s a book that’s creative and interesting but also an easy enough read that everyone can read it and rave about it. It’s kind of like the Donnie Darko or Garden State of contemporary literature.
Straight Man by Richard Russo – This was really funny. If my aforementioned Oprah kick doesn’t get in the way, I’m probably going to go on an academic fiction kick if Straight Man is any indicator of the genre. Academia is still fresh in my mind, and the ups and downs and politics themselves are pretty damn funny. Good writing makes it funnier.
In other news:
I think this may be my being slow again, but I recently stumbled upon www.opensourcecinema.org. It seems that there are potential problems with the idea of creating a movie this way – a lot of content seems to repeat itself or be organized in not the most efficient way. But I think this is a pretty interesting idea backed by a lot of other really important ideas. With the recent release of Feed the Animals, the idea that copyright law infringes upon creativity is a relevant one. I plan on interviewing Brett Gaylor, and I’m interested in seeing how Basement Tapes is going.
Tags: Basement Tapes, Brett Gaylor, Bright Eyes, Conor Oberst, Daniel Clowes, David Boring, Drinking Coffee Elsewhere, Feed the Animals, Forlorn Funnies, Ghost World, Girl Talk, graphic novels, Howard Cruse, Ian Bennett, Jeffrey Brown, Leap Years, Like A Velvet Glove Cast in Iron, Marjorie Weinman Sharmat, Mark Haddon, Maus, Mitchell is Moving, Mystic Valley Band, NYC Gone Gone, Open Source Cinema, Paul Hornschemeir, Pussey!, Richard Russo, Song of Solomon, Straight Man, Stuck Rubber Baby, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Toni Morrison, Z.Z. Packer
