Photo by Johanna B

CONOR OBERST of indie US rock act BRIGHT EYES fame was named Rollingstone Magazine’s Songwriter of the Year for 2008. What does he really think about all the fuss, attention, accolades and success? Read on to find out.

A little over a year ago Oberst commented in an interview ‘I’m scared of success’ since then the artist which has been compared to legendary music icon Bob Dylan has had a great deal of success receiving critical acclaim for his work with both Bright Eyes and latest musical project the Mystic Valley Band. “I feel lucky to be able to do this and make a living playing music. It’s not something that a lot of people get to do,” he says with genuine gratitude, “A lot of friends I have are very talented and they’re still working jobs. The rest of it [success] is… I guess I don’t really think about it that much.”

The part he does think about and that he finds greatest joy and satisfaction in is the human connection side of things. “I do think its cool how sometimes you can really make someone’s day,” he tells, “There could be some little kid sitting outside the club all day and then you go talk to them and they’re so happy. The rest of it doesn’t’ really matter.”

According to Oberst the greatest thing anyone could get from his art is “…to have a smile on their faces when they listen to it. I try not to think about those things though because it’s going to be different for everyone that’s what I think is great about music, how it can be interpreted in so many different ways. A lot of people find what they’re looking for in it, something specific to what they need. I shouldn’t get hung up trying to make them see it a certain way because I think it’s in the multitude of interpretations they’re probably finding what they need.”

Oberst admits that even after creating and performing music since a young age – his first live performance at six years old singing 50s hit Oh Donna with his father’s cover band “My mum has this friend called Donna and I really liked her that’s why I wanted to sing that song” – he still hasn’t figured out the whole idea of art versus entertainment. “It becomes real complex,” he comments, “The way I look at it is that I want to write songs and it’s something I don’t have any control over, it’s what I do. In order to do that in this world which is based on paper, exchanging paper, money and all that, it’s like you have to do certain things. Then there’s how much you owe to all these things that I wouldn’t place any value on but somehow I have to care about them. It’s just part of the deal, it’s strange. It’s difficult to know what to do some times.”

One thing that Oberst is sure about is the decision he made to record latest work Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band in Mexico. “I’ve been there before playing with Bright Eyes and I really liked it,” he says explaining that from the moment he touched down south of the border he felt a connection to the place. “When the idea of making the record came up I knew I didn’t want to do it in the studio. I was looking into different places to rent, different houses around the States. The stars all aligned and a friend that lives down there saw a place and sent me some pictures and it all came together; now that it has all happened I couldn’t imagine it happening anywhere else… I like the idea of recording in places that aren’t in studios that are in houses. I think I’ll definitely do something like that again.”

“It was probably the most relaxing, enjoyable recording experience I’ve ever had,” he informs of the period. Waking around noon and playing and recording into the night as well as lighting bonfires, drinking beer and gazing up at the stars is how Oberst and his pals spent their days during the process. “It was nice because it didn’t really feel like the world existed outside our little town and that’s a cool feeling,” he reminisces fondly.

Right now Oberst is out on the road creating new memories on tour in America’s south. “We’re actually on tour with my friend Jenny Lewis and her band,” he enthuses, “We’re playing these nice little towns… the weather is really nice. Everyone is in a good mood so times are good. We’re in a town called Fayetteville, Arkansas. They have a big biker rally this weekend so there are lots of guys with Harleys. They have a carnival across the street and there’s a guy that made Willie Nelson a guitar strap who’s making me one right now!”

For the down-to-earth artist life is “…honestly just having a lot of laughs with my friends, all my friends I’m travelling with. We’re just playing music and laughing and joking around that’s pretty much what our days are about… I feel lucky every day just to be alive and breathing the air. Music has really been the one consistent force in my life that has shaped my world and given me purpose. It’s pretty powerful. I don’t believe in a whole lot of things but I do believe in rock n roll.”

www.conoroberst.com