The Happiest Place on Earth

Desaparecidos is a 5-piece rock band fronted by Bright Eyes singer/songwriter Conor Oberst (vocals, guitar) and featuring Denver Dalley (guitar), Landon Hedges (bass, vocals), Ian McElroy (keyboards), and Matt Baum (drums). Matt and Ian are familiar to many of you from the various incarnations of Bright Eyes' touring band of which they played in.

Oberst may be better known for his confessional songwriting and storytelling, but Desaparecidos is nothing of the sort. Indeed, similar vocal melodies and song structure are present, but the guitars are loud and distorted, the bass is pounding, and the drums and keyboards round out this hi-energy, pop-rock band without the lyrical focus of personal relationships. Oberst screams out observational commentary about urban development, the sacrafice of human value for the dollar bill, and the new American Dream.