Bright Eyes is offering up a track off of their new album, The People's Key, with a free mp3 download of "Haile Selassie". As the track title suggests, the song is an exploration of the Rastafarian movement's idealism, which credits former Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie as their inspiration and leader. Conor Oberst makes the importance of this humanity-driven theme clear within the album, especially through this bluntly named track.

Lyrically, the song is rich in Rastafarian ideals. Oberst calls for us to humble ourselves and return to the promise land of Zion, be wary of progressive phenomenons such as atom-splitting, and find our belonging within the values of the Rastafarian movement by accessing our soul. While the lyrics are clearly what give the song its depth and meaning, credit goes to the opening notes of "Haile Selassie" for igniting intrigue within the listener. The beat picks up in a simple fashion, but guitar-driven variations and vocal shifts mix up the tune and give it a subtle dreamlike quality that straddles the border between catchy ditty and a peaceful indie/rock trance.

In an e-mail-for-song trade off, you can catch this new track from Bright Eyes' album, The People's Key, out February 15th.



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