Look Up At That Cassadaga Everest

Bright Eyes, Penelope Isles

Arena Wien Open Air presented by PSI2, Austria 20220825

Since the Arena open air show with Wolfmother and Rival Sons unfortunately got cancelled, PSI2 presents another Indie Rock highlight after Franz Ferdinand in April.

Tonight, the support act comes from the home of Black Peaks and Esben & The Witch: Brighton. Before Penelope Isles enter the stage, some Merengue influenced danceable music and Hip Hop beats spread the right mood on this comfortable summer evening. With their mainly slower but groovy tunes from „Which Way To Happy“ and the debut „Until The Tide Creeps In“, the young three-piece manages to attract many listeners on the sunburned ground. 

Omaha, Nebraska is the origin of Conor Oberst, mastermind of Bright Eyes. But there is also no reason to visit the place, as he tells. He played e.g. at Southside 2011 with likes of the Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys, Incubus, Flogging Molly, The Sounds and many more. This time, he is joined by Jon Theodore (QOTSA, The Mars Volta), strings and brass, making the band consist of fourteen musicians on stage with the optician backdrop.

Like Ryder The Eagle, Conor prances from left to right, telling that the latest 2020 album „Down in the Weeds, Where the World Once Was“ still feels very new, as they couldn’t tour before with it. They start with „Dance and Sing“ and two songs from „Lifted“, before the great single „Mariana Trench“. Also they perform a song Conor wrote when he was 15 years old. Close to the end, the band applauds for the audience, asking them to be silent in the meantime. The encore is led by „First Day of My Life“ and Conor’s thoughts on dead friends, kneeling at the end of „One for You, One for Me“. As only pity, „Four Winds“ is missing, but the pleasant concert makes looking forward, as Tash Sultana is just behind the corner..