Bright Eyes

Bright Eyes is a band consisting of singer-songwriter/guitarist Conor Oberst, multi-instrumentalist/producer Mike Mogis, Nate Walcott, and a rotating lineup of collaborators. Oberst's age and his liking for social commentary and philosophy has made the people to compare him to a young Bob Dylan.

Bright Eyes has been signed to the independent label Saddle Creek Records. The band enjoys mainstream popularity that rivals that of their major label contemporaries: in 2004, the singles Lua and Take It Easy (Love Nothing) took the top two spots of Billboard's Hot 100 Singles Sales chart within two weeks of their simultaneous release.

Initially, Bright Eyes was the side project of Conor Oberst. He was busy as the frontman for the indie rock outfit Commander Venus, which featured Tim Kasher. The band remained his primary focus between the years 1995 and 1997. However, he continued writing and record acoustic solo material onto his father's four-track reel-to-reel in his parents' basement. He is reported to have recorded 70 songs. However, only two songs were included into the first official Bright Eyes release, an untitled 7 split with the band Squad Car 96.

Bright Eyes had become Oberst's main focus when Commander Venus was disbanded in 1997. He released the first official Bright Eyes album, A Collection of Songs Written and Recorded 1995-1997 which contained 20 songs. With the release of album in 1998, Oberst also started experimenting with drum machines, keyboards and other instruments. The sound of the album ranges from bleating vocals to acoustic guitar songs and techno-style synthesizer instrumentals.

Bright Eyes released Fevers and Mirrors in 2000. It demonstrated the immense improvement in production quality and musical vision of the band. New instruments such as flute, piano, and accordion were introduced into the song arrangements. After An Attempt to Tip the Scales, a mock radio interview takes place in which Oberst intentionally presents a strange, contradictory explanation of his attitude towards his music.

2002 saw the release of Lifted or The Story Is in the Soil, Keep Your Ear to the Ground. The difference was immediate. Bright Eyes became one of the year's most celebrated new artists even though they have been recording under that name for a few years. They were successful in gaining national national attention. There were also several notable pieces in the New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Time Magazine, Rolling Stone, Blender and Spin, many of which proclaimed Conor Oberst to be a significant new artist. The album proved to be a huge success and it sold over 100,000 copies in the first six months after its release.

During the 2004 election season, Bright Eyes toured with Bruce Springsteen and R.E.M. on the MoveOn.org Vote for Change tour. It further enhanced their popularity among the common people.

In early November 2004, two Bright Eyes singles, Lua and Take It Easy (Love Nothing), reached the two top spots on the Billboard Hot 100 Single Sales.It is a remarkable historic achievement for a musician on an independent label. It happened for the first time on the list in seven years.

Two distinctly different Bright Eyes albums were released on January 25, 2005. The names of these albums were the folky, analog sounding I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning and the electronic/computer sounding Digital Ash in a Digital Urn. Both albums proved to be super hits and an extensive world tour followed.

Bright Eyes appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on May 6, 2005. They performed the protest song When the President Talks to God. It was a scathing rebuke of the Bush administration. A 7 vinyl single of the song was soon after sold at concerts and can also be downloaded free of charge on the US iTunes Music Store.

Bright Eyes won Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for When the President Talks to God at the PLUG Independent Music Awards and a Special Recognition Award for the video for First Day of My Life at the 17th Annual GLAAD Media Awards. Additionally, Time Magazine listed I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning as one of the top ten albums of 2005.

Bright Eyes received a pop-culture honor on May 20, 2006 in being mentioned in an episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Kevin Spacey. The show was making fun of Neil Young's not-so-subtle dislike of George W. Bush, specifically on his album Living With War.

Bright Eyes plans to release a new studio album entitled Cassadaga via Saddle Creek on April 9, 2007, with an EP entitled Four Winds on March 6, 2007.