''Ruminations'' is the seventh solo

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by American musician

Conor Oberst Conor Mullen Oberst (born February 15, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter best known for his work in Bright Eyes (band), Bright Eyes. He has also played in several other bands, including Desaparecidos (band), Desaparecidos, the Faint (previou ...

, released on October 14, 2016 on

Nonesuch Records Nonesuch Records is an American record company and label owned by Warner Music Group, distributed by Warner Records (formerly Warner Bros. Records), and based in New York City. Founded by Jac Holzman in 1964 as a budget classical label, Nonesuch ...

. An expanded edition of the album featuring five bonus tracks was released on July 23, 2021.

Background

On October 28, 2015, in the midst of

Desaparecidos An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person with the support or acquiescence of a State (polity), state followed by a refusal to acknowledge the person's fate or whereabouts with the i ...

' tour for their second studio album ''

Payola Payola, in the music industry, is the name given to the illegal practice of paying a commercial radio station to play a song without the station disclosing the payment. Under U.S. law, a radio station must disclose songs they were paid to pla ...

'', it was announced that Conor Oberst had been hospitalized due to "

laryngitis Laryngitis is inflammation of the larynx (voice box). Symptoms often include a hoarse voice and may include fever, cough, pain in the front of the neck, and trouble swallowing. Typically, these last under 2 weeks. Causes Laryngitis is cat ...

, anxiety, and exhaustion," according to a press release. The entirety of Desaparecidos' remaining tour dates were cancelled and Oberst returned to his hometown of Omaha to recuperate. Oberst spent the following months in Omaha, where he wrote and recorded the songs that makeup ''Ruminations''.

Recording

The album was recorded in February 2016 at ARC Studios in Oberst's native

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

, with the recording process taking just two days. The album was engineered by Ben Brodin, mixed by

Mike Mogis Mike Mogis is an American producer/mixer/engineer and multi-instrumentalist who owns ARC Studios (Another Recording Company) in downtown Omaha, Nebraska, Omaha. Mike, along with his brother A. J. Mogis, A.J. Mogis, founded Presto! Recording Stud ...

and mastered by

Bob Ludwig Robert Carl Ludwig (born December 11, 1944), is a retired American mastering engineer. He mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists, including Led Zeppeli ...

. Described as an acoustic album, the songs on the album solely feature Oberst and consist of vocals, acoustic guitar, piano, and harmonica. In a press release, Oberst described ''Ruminations inception: All ten main tracks and five bonus tracks were re-recorded with a full band for Oberst's following album '' Salutations''.

Artwork

The

album artwork An album cover (also referred to as album art) is the front packaging art of a commercially released studio album or other audio recordings. The term can refer to: * the printed paperboard covers typically used to package: ** sets of and 78 ...

features a photograph captured by Julia Brokaw of Oberst playing piano and harmonica with a microphone and sheet music on display, marking the album's low-production and minimal instrumentation.

Background

Recording

Artwork

Accolades

Track listing

Charts

References