Conor Oberst released the last Bright Eyes record Cassadaga in 2007. Since then he’s been hard at work, both with the Mystic Valley Band and his folk “supergroup” Monsters of Folk. In an interview given prior to the release of The People’s Key, Bright Eyes’s latest and possibly last record, Oberst stated, “I was really burnt out on that rootsy Americana shit, so I tried to steer clear of that.” The Americana sound hasn’t been completely eliminated, but instead of being a focal point it serves much more as a counterpoint. The resulting songs make up what just might be Bright Eyes’s most accessible record to date.

It’s impossible to ignore the presence of Refried Ice Cream frontman Denny Brewer on this record. In typical Bright Eyes fashion, the lead track, “Firewall”, is designed to ward off any casual listeners. Brewer spends the nearly the first 2:30 minutes talking, almost rambling, about a reptilian race and how it changed the development of our society. Oberst finally begins singing over a riff that sounds like something Kurt Cobain may have written. “Firewall” sets the tone and theme for the remainder of the record.

The first single “Shell Games” is a catchy, up-tempo song focusing on the music industry and, more specifically, the career of the band, referencing the majority of their records in the first verse. Even though the song is nearly four minutes long, it feels considerably shorter, a testament to the writing ability of Oberst. “Jejune Stars” is a stand-out track. The first six seconds are a frantic thrash almost reminiscent of Desaparecidos; thankfully that doesn’t stick around. The song develops into a wonderfully written, hook-laden event that will surely be bouncing around the listener’s head for days after one play.

The next bunch of tracks trudge steadily along as Oberst continues in his attempt to figure out how we got here and what in the hell we’re supposed to be doing. This train of thought it highlighted in “Triple Spiral” when he croons “I loved you triple spiral // Father, son, and ghost // But you left me in my darkest hour // When I needed you, when I needed you.”

The next to last track “Ladder Song” might be the best on the record. It immediately brings the listener back to a much younger Bright Eyes, perhaps as far back as Fevers and Mirrors. A piano and a voice are the only things necessary to deliver some of the heaviest seconds on the entire record: “You’re not alone in anything // You’re not unique in dying”, “If I gotta go first // I’ll do it on my terms”, “Don’t hang around once the promise breaks // You’ll be there when the next one’s made”. Even though The People’s Key doesn’t contain the best lyrics the band has ever written, “Ladder Song” can stand up to nearly anything in the band’s expansive catalog.

The People’s Key comes four years after Bright Eyes last release but the band sounds as if they never took a day off. The record is cohesive, tightly written, and engrossing. At just under forty-seven minutes, The People’s Key may not be Bright Eyes’s best record but it certainly is one worth spending plenty of time with.

***.75/*****

*This review was composed by Dan Beach