Rainy Day Blues II, ft. Bright Eyes

Don't worry guys, it's still the worst weather ever in Massachusetts.

And in my last post I made a grievous error. I overlooked possibly the most depressing artist to listen to besides Elliot Smith: Bright Eyes. How could I forget!

Put yourself in this little scenario: You were just having a great time at some sort of indoor social event. The party is now dwindling, people are leaving and it's time for you to go–you'll be leaving alone.

So you get out of this really fun get-together, you step outside, and it's pouring rain. The 15 minute walk ahead of you will now be a cold, wet 15 minute walk of misery. Got it?

Now picture that and listen to this.

How happy are you? Thought so.

Now, as I said with Elliot Smith, there is beauty in the sadness of Bright Eyes. Musically and lyrically, it's a portal, more or less, into someone else's soul. I know I sound like a whack-job with all this portal nonsense, but it's kinda the way I see it.

That being said, Bright Eyes has more to offer than just sadness. I'll be referring to the album I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning here. As far as I'm concerned that album is his best. It's also one of my favorites of all time.

Bright Eyes can provide socially conscious anger.

Grim, almost comical, acceptance of death!

And last but not least, actual happiness!

A lot of Bright Eyes' albums are hit and miss, and some are downright horrible (Digital Ash In A Digital Urn). But I'm Wide Awake It's Morning is a masterpiece. You can do without the rest of his work, but I'm Wide Awake is a must-have. Especially for these cold, rainy days.

Again, this ain't no Jack Johnson, folks.