Conor Oberst Played Carnegie Hall [photos]

Last Wednesday, the night before Thanksgiving, worlds collided when Conor Oberst (@comvb) played a stripped down show at — wait for it — Carnegie Hall. Once you got over how strange it felt to be sitting in velvet seats listening to moody teenage anthems, the show was by far one of the best this year. Oberst has an aptitude for playing what the audience wants to hear, covering old Bright Eyes favorites such as “Classic Cars” and “First Day of My Life.” And also playing material from his many musical endeavors: Monsters of Folk, Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, and of course, his solo albums.

Despite the simple set up — the instruments and chairs circled in the middle of the stage — there were a few technical hiccups during the show. But Oberst played through them with finesse while the audience remained more than supportive. Bodies swayed and mouths sang along with the familiar lyrics while Oberst performed, often with the help of his friends. This included Bright Eyes band mates Nate Walcott and Ben Brodin, as well as Ian Felice of The Felice Brothers.

Oberst was warm towards the crowd, constantly checking in and also sharing his thoughts. “How you all feeling out there? I know it’s hard to sit in a seat for so long. I would have been gone like an hour ago, but I appreciate your patience.” Despite the performance being sold out, it was an incredibly intimate evening.

Near the end of the show, Oberst took a minute to give thanks to his friends and family, appropriately so, since the show fell on Thanksgiving Eve. And one of the best moments was right then as he said he was thankful “we all survived that bitch, Sandy.” We, of course, cheered loudly in response.

At the end of the day, the atypical venue choice was refreshing… although the employees at Carnegie Hall never gave up telling people off for taking photographs and videos.

Conor Oberst only has a few more shows stateside before heading to Europe. Catch him before he’s gone!