Phoebe Bridgers Joins Bright Eyes For ‘Lua’ In Nashville

Phoebe Bridgers revisited an early chapter of her collaboration with Conor Oberst when she joined Bright Eyes for “Lua” at Brooklyn Bowl Nashville on Monday. The longtime collaborators and Better Oblivion Community Center bandmates shared vocals on the I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning favorite during the encore.

Before the duet, Oberst recalled that “Lua” was one of the first songs he ever sang with Bridgers, who confirmed his recollection. Oberst’s guitar anchored the sparse arrangement, with occasional swirls of organ and a trumpet solo from Nate Walcott accompanying their voices.

Bridgers and Oberst first met at a July 2016 show at Los Angeles’ Bootleg Theater, where she performed on a bill that included the Bright Eyes frontman. Oberst was impressed enough to ask for her record and subsequently invited her to open his Ruminations tour. The two sang “Lua” together on the road, establishing a musical partnership that soon extended to their recordings.

Oberst appeared on “Would You Rather” from Bridgers’ 2017 debut album, Stranger In The Alps, which Bright Eyes multi-instrumentalist Mike Mogis mixed. Their songwriting sessions grew into Better Oblivion Community Center, unveiled in January 2019 with a surprise self-titled album and a performance on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. The band’s ensuing tour mixed songs from the album with selections from Bridgers’ and Oberst’s catalogs, including Bright Eyes material.

The connections also extend to Bridgers’ 2020 album, Punisher, which featured contributions from Oberst and Walcott and was again mixed by Mogis. Bridgers then participated in Bright Eyes’ 2022 Companion EP series, singing on reworked songs including “Haligh, Haligh, A Lie, Haligh” and joining the band for a cover of Elliott Smith’s “St. Ides Heaven.”

“Lua” has remained part of their onstage history. Bridgers joined Oberst at his Teragram Ballroom residency in Los Angeles on March 21, 2024 for an encore featuring the song, Better Oblivion Community Center’s “My City” and Oberst’s solo cut “Double Life.”

Monday’s Nashville appearance placed “Lua” between “The Vanishing Act” and the show-closing “Make War.” Earlier, Bright Eyes opened with “Don’t Know When But A Day Is Gonna Come” and worked through a set drawing heavily on LIFTED Or The Story Is In The Soil, Keep Your Ear To The Ground and Cassadaga.

Watch Phoebe Bridgers join Bright Eyes for “Lua” below:

Bright Eyes continue their fall tour tonight at Tipitina’s in New Orleans.