The 10 Best Americana Albums of 2007

If 2007 didn't invite any gripping controversies, it was certainly filled with competitive comparisons -- between young and old, past and present, and among splintered factions -- and both surprising hits and disappointing misses. All in all, a dynamic and at times resurgent year for the broad scope of Americana.

                                      
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Music

Conor Oberst: Upside Down Mountain

Conor Oberst steers clear from social prognosis or overbearing attempts at change, focusing more on what broke him into the mainstream’s eye in the first place.

Music

Conor Oberst - "Hundreds of Ways" (stream)

Bright Eyes frontman releases a freewheeling, genre-jumping single from his forthcoming solo album.

Reviews

Desaparecidos + Little Brazil: 9 August 2012 - Minneapolis, MN

Desaparecidos, Conor Oberst's post-hardcore band, officially reunited and kicked off their tour in fiery fashion.

Music

They'll Be Your Emmylou: An Interview with First Aid Kit

These Swedish sisters are barely in their 20s, but now with their second album acknowledging country's storied past, they get big help from the likes of Mike Mogis, the Felice Brothers, and Conor Oberst. The ladies sit down with PopMatters to tell us all about their wonderful journey ...

Music

M. Ward: A Wasteland Companion

Three years since his last solo album, the prolific, melodic M. Ward goes out on his own again (with only some minor supporting appearances from Zooey Deschanel).

Music

First Aid Kit: The Lion's Roar

At its best, The Lion’s Roar is a staggering beautiful recreation of the sounds of Americana long gone, with a few added sprinkles and melodramatic twists that contribute extra dimension and weight to the material.

Reviews

Bright Eyes Get Spirited in a Graveyard

Conor Oberst peels back the petulance to reveal a great performer.

Melissa Bobbitt

Music

Bright Eyes: The People's Key

On The People's Key, Conor Oberst bids farewell to an adolescence marked by histrionics and artistic restlessness. Even enfants terribles have to grow up sometime.

Reviews

'Freedom' Explores What It Means to be Good

Walter's situation is indicative of that which all of Franzen’s characters face: How to negotiate our better selves against the tug of monetary gain, sexual desire, and the competitive streak that so often both defines and undoes us all.

Music

Jesse Harris: Through the Night

The through-line of Through the Night seems to be a pared-down, unfussy approach to music that clearly comes from the heart.

Jennifer Cooke

Music

Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band: Outer South

Conor Oberst's post-Bright Eyes growing pains continue with an overstuffed, half-baked album that feels more like a compilation.

Music

Bright Eyes: Motion Sickness: Live Recordings

This collection of live recordings from Oberst's 2005 tour provides the link between his previously unhinged emotion and his new, more relaxed country persona.

Music

Various Artists: This is Next

The world is better for every new pair of ears that gets turned on to Of Montreal and Ted Leo. The only real question is this: do you really need this album to begin with?

Reviews

FEST FLASHBACK: Bonnaroo 2006 feat. Tom Petty, Ben Folds, Bright Eyes, Beck, and Radiohead

The education that begins today and continues long after the guitars have gone quiet.

Eddie Ciminelli

Music

Bright Eyes: Four Winds

“Restrained” is a word not often seen in Bright Eyes reviews, but it’s the best way to describe this new EP by Conor Oberst and friends.

Stephanie Butler

Music

Bright Eyes: Cassadaga

Conor Oberst has (mostly) left his indulgences behind, settling down to create an American indie rock album of substance, maturity, and passion. This is the Bright Eyes we've been waiting for.

Music

Bright Eyes: In Defense of Preciousness

Despite all the self-absorption, and directly in spite of criticisms about the brittle timber of Conor Oberst's much commented on voice, Feldman lays her love for Bright Eyes out in public to defend the mysterious power of the hope that slips through the cracks in Bright Eyes' usually gloomy demeanor.

Sarah Feldman

Reviews

Bonnaroo 2006: Day 1 Feat. Andrew Bird, Ben Folds, Bright Eyes, Tom Petty, and My Morning Jacket

It's unclear whether or not Ben Folds' routine is a warning about the misuse of drugs. If it is, it's clearly falling on deaf ears.

Eddie Ciminelli

Music

Bright Eyes: I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning / Digital Ash in a Digital Urn

Together, though, they should elevate Oberst, for better or worse, into the big leagues of American songwriters.

Michael Pucci

Reviews

Bright Eyes

The guy who was once labeled an extremely talented -- though a tad simplistic - is now a troubadour of depth and complexity.

Tim Stelloh

Reviews

Bright Eyes

Cori Taratoot

Reviews

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Conor Oberst steers clear from social prognosis or overbearing attempts at change, focusing more on what broke him into the mainstream’s eye in the first place.

Bright Eyes frontman releases a freewheeling, genre-jumping single from his forthcoming solo album.

Desaparecidos, Conor Oberst's post-hardcore band, officially reunited and kicked off their tour in fiery fashion.

These Swedish sisters are barely in their 20s, but now with their second album acknowledging country's storied past, they get big help from the likes of Mike Mogis, the Felice Brothers, and Conor Oberst. The ladies sit down with PopMatters to tell us all about their wonderful journey ...

Three years since his last solo album, the prolific, melodic M. Ward goes out on his own again (with only some minor supporting appearances from Zooey Deschanel).

At its best, The Lion’s Roar is a staggering beautiful recreation of the sounds of Americana long gone, with a few added sprinkles and melodramatic twists that contribute extra dimension and weight to the material.

Conor Oberst peels back the petulance to reveal a great performer.

On The People's Key, Conor Oberst bids farewell to an adolescence marked by histrionics and artistic restlessness. Even enfants terribles have to grow up sometime.

Walter's situation is indicative of that which all of Franzen’s characters face: How to negotiate our better selves against the tug of monetary gain, sexual desire, and the competitive streak that so often both defines and undoes us all.

The through-line of Through the Night seems to be a pared-down, unfussy approach to music that clearly comes from the heart.

Conor Oberst's post-Bright Eyes growing pains continue with an overstuffed, half-baked album that feels more like a compilation.

This collection of live recordings from Oberst's 2005 tour provides the link between his previously unhinged emotion and his new, more relaxed country persona.

The world is better for every new pair of ears that gets turned on to Of Montreal and Ted Leo. The only real question is this: do you really need this album to begin with?

The education that begins today and continues long after the guitars have gone quiet.

“Restrained” is a word not often seen in Bright Eyes reviews, but it’s the best way to describe this new EP by Conor Oberst and friends.

Conor Oberst has (mostly) left his indulgences behind, settling down to create an American indie rock album of substance, maturity, and passion. This is the Bright Eyes we've been waiting for.

Rewarding hodge-podge of treasure and trash continues the journey of Bright Eyes.

It's unclear whether or not Ben Folds' routine is a warning about the misuse of drugs. If it is, it's clearly falling on deaf ears.

Together, though, they should elevate Oberst, for better or worse, into the big leagues of American songwriters.

The guy who was once labeled an extremely talented -- though a tad simplistic - is now a troubadour of depth and complexity.