A big, hearty salad of sound is the way to describe Hysterical Stars by Head of Femur. Musicians Matt Focht (vocals, guitar, also of Bright Eyes), Ben Armstrong (vocals, keyboards, drums, ex-Commander Venus) and Mike Elsener (vocals/guitar, also of Solar Wind) form the backbone of this Nebraska based indie rock “supergroup.” But Head of Femur has brought in a large number other players on their second full length album. Where else can you hear a trumpet, gong, glockenspiel and violin all wrapped up in a pop album?
In the first night of a five-night run in New York City’s historic Greenwich village, where Bob Dylan rose from a coffeehouse open-mic regular to legendary status., Bright Eyes brought their music to the forefront. With the release of two critically acclaimed, and vastly different, albums earlier this year, Bright Eyes has quickly gained notoriety and popularity resulting in his face gracing the covers of practically every indie music magazine around.
Omaha, Nebraska is slowly turning into the new New York with a couple of bands emerging from the cornfields to make big names for themselves. The first to do so was the emo band Bright Eyes headed by Omaha native Conor Oberst. Now it’s the electro-dance group The Faint.
