Bright Eyes made an ornate appearance on Wednesday’s The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, performing “Dance and Sing” with orchestral accompaniment. The track from 2020’s Down in the Weeds, Where the World Once Was saw the Conor Oberst-led outfit enlist the aid of string and horn sections in addition to a full band.
Though the late-1990s, early-2000s emo-indie forebearers are identified as an Oberst project, Wednesday’s Colbert appearance shows just how many people are responsible for making Bright Eyes possible. Longtime band members Mike Mogis and Nate Walcott leave their mark, with the former pulling double duty on pedal steel and mandolin and the latter contributing hauntingly grandiose piano accompaniment. Then there’s the addition of cello, violin, trombone, flute, clarinet, and more which put the final gusto to a standout track from the band’s first new album in nine years.
At the musical and physical center, however, is Oberst. Appearing like a Sith Lord that just rolled out of bed, his onstage demeanor blurs the line between boastful MC and walking Zoloft commercial. His biting lyricism coalesces with self-deprecating wit to create a new product that still holds onto the right amount of nostalgia. He barks, “With the Walkman fading like an audio slave / It’s a self-induced seizure like a kid at a rave / Smeared in Day-Glo paint / And all the popular prophets / Want to take me to task / Well it’s just your opinion / So I’d rather not ask.”
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Watch Bright Eyes perform “Dance and Sing” on Colbert. The band is in the midst of a massive reissue project, which will see remastered re-releases of the group’s entire discography in addition to companion EPs with reworked originals and select covers. A Collection of Songs Written and Recorded 1995-1997, Letting Off The Happiness, and Fevers and Mirrors are all due out on May 27th via Dead Oceans. Click here to pre-order.
Bright Eyes – “Dance and Sing”