While Conor Oberst may be primarily known for his work at the helm of Bright Eyes, there is much more to the 40-year-old singer-songwriter. On the other side of the indie-folk hitmaker lies an affinity for country music that spurred him to form the cover project Dolores Diaz & The Standby Club.
On Tuesday, the group announced its first-ever release—a live EP compiled from two of the five gigs they’ve ever played entitled Live at O’Leavers. Ahead of the collection’s release, Dolores Diaz & The Standby Club have shared live recordings of Bob Dylan‘s “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” and Loretta Lynn‘s “Don’t Come Home a-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind)”.
While Oberst may provide the star power that makes the group newsworthy, it is actually his now-ex-wife Corina Figueroa Escamilla that fronts the group. The band also features fellow noteworthy Omaha, NE musicians Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes), Roger Lewis (The Good Life), Matt Maginn (Cursive), Dan McCarthy (McCarthy Trenching), Ben Brodin, Phil Schaffart, and Jim Schroder.
Per Rolling Stone, Dolores Diaz & The Standby Club originally came together in 2015 when Oberst became obsessed with a 1972 country music compilation, Them Old Country Songs. When his then-wife Escamilla returned home following a trip to her hometown of Mexico City, Oberst and his roommate MiWi La Lupa—who owned the Country Songs compilation—convinced Escamilla to sing lead in the group. Escamilla had worked for years as a trained audio engineer, but never before fronted a band. Oberst was convinced of her qualification for the job, however, after spending years listening to her sing in the studio. Escamilla ultimately agreed and adopted the stage name Dolores Diaz, a twist on Doris Day.
To date, Dolores Diaz & The Standby Club have played only five concerts, with the Live at O’Leavers recordings coming from the band’s January 2016 and August 2018 concerts at the titular Omaha club, owned by members of Cursive.
The band’s take on “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” features Oberst on lead vocals, while “Don’t Come Home a-Drinkin'” is all Escamilla. The honky-tonk vibe of the band is a far cry from anything Bright Eyes has ever done, but it appears that letting Oberst play out his cowboy fantasy may have helped his outlook a bit.
“Playing with the Standby Club is pure joy,” Oberst said in a statement. “There is a unique thrill in learning all those classic songs and getting to perform them with a giant band of old friends. And on top of that, it was amazing to watch Corina embrace her alter ego. She is normally a pretty reserved person, but when she slipped on those cowboy boots and stepped on stage she instantly transformed into Dolores and always blew the roof off the place. We all had so much fun and I think you can hear and feel that on these recordings.”
Listen to Dolores Diaz & The Standby Club’s covers of “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” and “Don’t Come Home a-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ On Your Mind)”. Live at O’Leavers is available digitally on December 11th through 15 Passenger, with vinyl out on April 9th. Click here to pre-order. Scroll down to see the full tracklist.
Dolores Diaz & The Standby Club – “Don’t Come Home a-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ On Your Mind)” (Loretta Lynn) / “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” (Bob Dylan) – Live at O’Leavers
[H/T Rolling Stone]