Bright Eyes is an American indie rock band founded by singer-songwriter and guitarist Conor Oberst. It consists of Oberst, multi-instrumentalist and producer Mike Mogis, arranger, composer and trumpet and piano player Nate Walcott, and a rotating line-up of collaborators drawn primarily from Omaha's indie music scene. Between 1998 and 2011, the band's albums were released through Saddle Creek Records, a Nebraska-based label founded by Justin Oberst and Mogis. In January 2020, the band announced their return, having signed with Dead Oceans.
Fevers and Mirrors is the third album by the Nebraska indie band Bright Eyes, recorded in 1999 and released on May 29, 2000. It was the 32nd release of the Omaha, Nebraska-based record label Saddle Creek Records. The album was released later in 2000 in the United Kingdom as the inaugural release from Wichita Recordings.
Letting Off the Happiness is the second album released by the indie rock band Bright Eyes. The album was released on November 2, 1998. It was the first release by Bright Eyes to feature and be produced by Mike Mogis, now a permanent member of the band. A vinyl re-release of the album was included in the Bright Eyes Vinyl Box Set in 2012. Guest musicians include members of Cursive, Tilly and the Wall, and Elephant 6 collective's Neutral Milk Hotel and of Montreal.
Saddle Creek Records is an American record label based in Omaha, Nebraska. Started as a college class project on entrepreneurship, the label was founded by Mike Mogis and Justin Oberst in 1993. Mogis soon turned over his role in the company to Robb Nansel. The label is named after Saddle Creek Road, a street that cuts through the east side of midtown Omaha, and the beginnings of a scene whose members included Justin's brother Conor Oberst, Tim Kasher, and others. Collectively, they were known unofficially as the "Creekers". Saddle Creek first appeared in print on a show flyer, offering to "Spend an evening with Saddle Creek" Saddle Creek became an incorporated entity as a result of a class project on entrepreneurship. Distribution is handled by Redeye Distribution.
The Music of Nebraska has included a variety of country, jazz, blues, ragtime, rock and alternative rock musicians. Several towns across the state have active musical venues, with several communities having a particularly important musical legacy.
Conor Mullen Oberst is an American singer-songwriter best known for his work in Bright Eyes. He has also played in several other bands, including Desaparecidos, The Faint, Commander Venus, Park Ave., Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, Monsters of Folk, and Better Oblivion Community Center. Oberst was named the Best Songwriter of 2008 by Rolling Stone magazine.
Danse Macabre is the third studio album by the rock band The Faint. It was released on August 21, 2001 in the U.S. and roughly a year later in the UK, where it has enjoyed similar popularity.
Head of Femur is an American Chicago-based band, formed in November 2001 by Nebraska natives Mike Elsener, Ben Armstrong and Matt Focht. The band was initially conceived as a forum for the three to compose pop songs while awaiting the reformation of their previous band, Pablo's Triangle. As the weeks passed the reformation looked unlikely.
Michael Riley Mogis is an American producer/engineer and multi-instrumentalist who, along with his brother A.J. Mogis, founded Presto! Recording Studios. Mogis currently runs ARC in downtown Omaha.
Jeff Hanson was a singer-songwriter, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist, whose voice was described in a 2005 Paste review as an "angelic falsetto, a cross between Alison Krauss and Art Garfunkel that is often (understandably) mistaken for a female contralto".
The Ugly Organ is the fourth studio album by American rock band Cursive, released on March 4, 2003, through Saddle Creek Records. It was released both on black and translucent green 180 gram vinyl.
Steve Pedersen is an American guitarist from Omaha, Nebraska. He left Cursive in 1998 to attend law school at Duke University in North Carolina, after graduating from Creighton University with a degree in political science. At Duke, he started the band The White Octave, which released two albums and appeared on a few samplers. When Pedersen graduated, he returned to Omaha, started Criteria, and began working at Kutak Rock LLP.
A.J. Mogis is a musician from North Platte, Nebraska. He currently plays bass guitar in the indie-rock band Criteria. His brother is Mike Mogis. Together, they founded Presto! Recording Studios and have recorded almost all the albums released by Saddle Creek Records as well as albums by friends' bands. They were also members of Lullaby for the Working Class. Criteria has so far released two albums.
Lullaby for the Working Class was an indie folk rock band from Lincoln, Nebraska, active from the mid-to-late 1990s. Fronted by Omaha, Nebraska singer-songwriter Ted Stevens, the group also featured multi-instrumentalist and producer Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes, his brother, producer A.J. Mogis, and drummer Shane Aspegren of Berg Sans Nipple.
Nathaniel Clifford "Nate" Walcott is an American musical composer, arranger, pianist, keyboard player, and trumpet player. He has composed the scores for several feature-length films, including 2014's The Fault in Our Stars. He is a member of the band Bright Eyes, and has played in Conor Oberst's Mystic Valley Band and with singer-songwriter M. Ward. Between 2016 and 2019, Walcott was the touring pianist and keyboard player for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, during their The Getaway World Tour.
Ghosty is a Lawrence, Kansas-based indie rock band formed in 1999. They are best known for their positive reviews by NPR, Currently the Ghosty lineup consists of Andrew Connor, Mike Nolte, David Wetzel and Josh Adams (drumset). Ghosty completed a coast-to-coast tour of the United States at the end of 2006 and began working on a new full-length album, Answers, which was released on January 11. Their most recent self-titled album was released on High Dive Records.
Criteria is an indie rock band from Omaha, Nebraska, formed in 2003 when ex-Cursive founding member Steve Pedersen returned to his hometown after graduating from the Duke University School of Law. He spent six months in a friend's basement where he wrote all ten songs for his new project's debut album. He recruited the help of some old friends, A.J. Mogis on bass guitar, Aaron Druery on guitar, and Mike Sweeney of Beep Beep on drums. Their first album, En Garde, was released on his previous band's label, Initial Records.
Old Blood is an album by Mayday, released May 14, 2002. The album was recorded in May and November 2001 at Presto! Recording Studios in Lincoln, Nebraska. Mayday features the vocals and compositions of Lullaby for the Working Class frontman Ted Stevens. Ted is joined by the remaining Lullaby members, including Mike and A.J. Mogis, whose talents extend from behind the mixing console as players on the recording.
Ghost Tropic is the fifth regular studio album by Songs: Ohia. It was recorded by Mike Mogis at Dead Space Recording Studio in Lincoln, Nebraska. The album's name refers to two short instrumentals that are surrounded by six vocal tracks of at least five and up to twelve minutes length. The reviews noted the somber and dark mood permeating the album. According to Pitchfork Media, "Ghost Tropic (...) sounds as though it were recorded live in a haunted hut somewhere in an Ecuadorian rainforest. At night." AllMusic was less sanguine: "Everything moves as slowly as a three-legged dog, and anyone neither patient enough nor attuned to Molina's style of songcraft might very well be put to sleep."
The People's Key is the ninth studio album by American band Bright Eyes. The album was recorded in Omaha, Nebraska at ARC Studios, produced by Mike Mogis, and engineered by Mogis and Andy LeMaster. The album was released on February 15, 2011, lead singer Conor Oberst's 31st birthday, by Saddle Creek Records. Prior to its official release, the album was available to stream online in its entirety, as part of NPR's "First Listen" series.
