Kids Table

In 2024, Bright Eyes’ inimitable figurehead Conor Oberst lent his distinctively black-and-blue vocals to “The World is Dangerous,” a dusky and ruminative tune from Alynda Segarra’s eighth album as Hurray for the Riff Raff, *The Past is Still Alive*. Clearly, the collab rubbed off on Oberst, whose EP *Kids Table*—a follow-up to 2024’s Bright Eyes album *Five Dice, All Threes*—finds him creatively melding with Segarra directly (the languid, slide guitar-laden, and exquisitely Bright Eyes-y “Dyslexic Palindrome”) while taking a seeming inspiration from their own folk-rock travelogues. With lyrical invectives against hipsters, Ronald Reagan, and various clothing retailers, “1st World Blues” has a first-wave ska feel that makes you think, if only for a second, that Oberst has busted out a porkpie hat and two-tone suit in the studio. Meanwhile, the string-laden opening title track offers a jauntier spin on Bright Eyes’ grandiose 2020s work, showcasing a project that is still constantly evolving even as its leader’s legend continues to grow.