Singer-songwriter Conor Oberst is stepping away from his old Bright Eyes moniker for a while longer. The musician will instead pick up two U.S. tour legs this year with his newest backing group, The Mystic Valley Band.
The alt-country outfit will kick off the season with a brief spring tour of the West, beginning April 9 at Slowdown in Omaha, NE, and closing out with an April 17 performance at Coachella in Indio, CA. The band will complete the coast-to-coast circuit with a recently announced run in early summer, opening June 17 at Black Sheep in Colorado Springs, CO, and wrapping July 3 at Toad’s Place in New Haven, CT.
During the spring and summer run, Oberst and company will stop for an April 11 show at Belly Up in Aspen, CO, an April 14 performance at The Marquee in Tempe, AZ, a June 21 concert at the Knitting Factory in Boise, ID, a June 24 set at First Avenue in Minneapolis, MN, and a June 30 gig at Headliners Music Hall in Louisville, KY.
The tour supports the impending May 5 release of “Outer South.” The record is Oberst’s second effort with the Mystic Valley line-up, but the first crediting the band under that name.
Oberst first worked with Taylor Hollingsworth, Nik Freitas, Macey Taylor, Nathaniel Walcott and Jason Boesel on his last self-titled solo album, which peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard 200 after its August 2008 release. The group completed a two-month tour in fall 2008 to support that album.
Oberst is best known for his work with Bright Eyes, a group mainly comprised of an ever-rotating line-up of collaborators. His last recording under that name was 2007’s “Cassadaga,” which hit No. 4 on the Billboard 200.
Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band itinerary:
(Dates are subject to change.)
| April 9 | Omaha, NE | Slowdown |
| April 10 | Denver, CO | Ogden Theatre |
| April 11 | Aspen, CO | Belly Up Aspen |
| April 12 | El Paso, TX | Barnett Harley Davidson |
| April 13 | Albuquerque, NM | Sunshine Theatre |
| April 14 | Tempe, AZ | The Marquee |
| April 15 | Pomona, CA | Glass House |
| April 17 | Indio, CA | Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival |
| June 17 | Colorado Springs, CO | Black Sheep |
| June 18 | Telluride, CO | Telluride Bluegrass Festival |
| June 19 | Moab, UT | Star Hall |
| June 20 | Salt Lake City, UT | Library Square |
| June 21 | Boise, ID | Knitting Factory |
| June 22 | Missoula, MT | Wilma Theatre |
| June 24 | Minneapolis, MN | First Avenue |
| June 25 | Milwaukee, WI | Summerfest |
| June 26 | Omaha, NE | Anchor Inn |
| June 28 | Kansas City, MO | Beaumont Club |
| June 29 | Columbia, MO | The Blue Note |
| June 30 | Louisville, KY | Headliners Music Hall |
| July 1 | Cleveland, OH | Grog Shop |
| July 2 | Woodstock, NY | Bearsville Theater |
| July 3 | New Haven, CT | Toad’s Place |
