Review Summary: If you don't have it, buy it.
The first time I heard Bright Eyes was probably about a year or so ago on Fuse. I had heard a lot of people saying good things about them, so I was really excited when the video came on. But a year ago I only listened to pop-punk and every sub-genre of metal in existence, so I thought Bright Eyes was really boring. Since then, I've broadened my musical tastes from two genres to everything except country, and I can honestly say that I'm in love with Bright Eyes.
A few months ago, I decided to give Bright Eyes another chance. I was in Circuit City one night and I came across Four Winds and Fevers and Mirrors. I bought both of them, and went home and listened to Four Winds first. From the first 10 seconds of the title track, I knew I would love the album. Conor Oberst, in my opinion, is one of the greatest songwriters of the past decade. The lyrics he writes are incredible; especially on this EP. And the musicianship is great too, considering all of the instruments played in their music.
The two best things about Four Winds, in my opinion, is the harmonica in Four Winds, and the guitar in Stray Dog Freedom. They're both really catchy, and so are his lyrics. But my favorite song on the album, hands down, has to be Cartoon Blues. The lyrics are great and the acoustic stuff in there is amazing. And the part that really stands out to me is the part in the middle where his voice is sped up and he's singing over it. It has a really eerie feel to it, and it's one of the highlights of the album.
This has to be one of my favorite EPs ever released, next to Irony Is A Dead Scene by The Dillinger Escape Plan and Straylight Run's Prepare To Be Wrong. It has mostly everything I'm looking for in a good album: musicianship, vocals, and lyrics. If you don't have it, I recommend picking it up as soon as possible.
