Beloved band Bright Eyes have announced the second wave of releases as part of their ongoing Companions project. The project, announced in March, sees the band rereleasing their entire catalog, each album accompanied by new recordings. Out November 11 via Dead Oceans: Lifted or the Story is in the Soil, Keep Your Ear to the Ground: A Companion, I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning: A Companion, and Digital Ash in a Digital Urn: A Companion.  

The EPs include stellar guest performances from Gillian Welch, Dave Rawlings, Becky Stark, and Maria Taylor as well as stunning covers of “November by Azure Ray,” “Fare Thee Well, Miss Carousel” by Townes Van Zandt and “Agenda Suicide” by The Faint.

The announcement comes with the release of three new Companion series recordings: “You Will. You? Will. You? Will. You? Will,”(originally from Lifted),  “Old Soul Song (for the New World Order),” (originally from Wide Awake) and “Gold Mine Gutted” (originally from Digital Ash). The band’s re-recording flips the styles of Wide Awake andDigital Ash – recording each of those tracks in the style of the other album which were released on the same day in 2005.

Coupled with this news comes a slew of new tour dates for fall. All dates below. Bright Eyes has partnered with PLUS1 so that $1 from every ticket sold goes to the PLUS1 x Noise For Now Reproductive Health Access fund supporting access to reproductive rights and services for all. Tickets on sale now from www.thisisbrighteyes.com.

Earlier this year the band released their first wave of Companion EPs: A Collection of Songs Written and Recorded 1995-1997: A Companion, Letting Off The Happiness: A Companion and Fevers and Mirrors: A Companion to widespread acclaim. Like the previous series of releases, each reissue in this new wave will be partnered with the release of a Companion EP of five new recordings of songs contained on the original release plus a cover version from an artist they found particularly inspiring at the time of the original recording. The Companion series gives Conor Oberst, Mike Mogis and Nathaniel Walcott a chance to revisit some of their earlier material and re-work it entirely – with the occasional addition of some talented friends. This ambitious project will see the release of 54 new recordings over the coming year.

Photo Courtesy: Shawn Brackbill