An important indie birthday is coming up on January 25: the 21st anniversary of Bright Eyes' 2005 albums, I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning and Digital Ash in a Digital Urn. To celebrate, the band will be performing both records in select cities across the US next May, hitting Morrison, CO, Los Angeles, CA, and New York, NY.

"I have always hated my birthdays but I love parties,” says front man Conor Oberst via press release. He continued:

“And I remember being really excited when I turned 21 for obvious reasons. So when the idea came up to celebrate the 21st anniversary of these two records who were born on the same day, Nate [Walcott], Mike [Mogis] and I took a long look in our full length mirror and finally said 'Fuck it, why not?' So we hope you can join us at one of these shows. It will be the 3 of us and many old friends coming together to make what will hopefully be, this magical thing happen. Hope to see you there. We are really excited. Love and light.”

Bright Eyes originally released I'm Wide Awake... and Digital Ash... on the same day. The former, the band's sixth studio record, was an expansion of the trio's indie folk roots into an Americana rock album. The latter steered into an eclectic, electronic territory, drawing more influence from the British new wave, synth pop, and goth rock.

When they toured both records in 2005, Bright Eyes dedicated half the performances to I'm Wide Awake and half to Digital Ash. So, 21 years later, they'll be combining both albums into a double-set, playing both in full.

Joining Bright Eyes on the anniversary tour will be The Moldy Peaches, Tilly and the Wall, and Built To Spill. All three bands — playing only on one of the three nights — will perform their sets in between I'm Wide Awake and Digital Ash.

Tickets for the three shows will go on sale this Friday, December 12 at 10 am local time. Attendees can also sign up for a presale, which will occur Wednesday, December 10 at 10 am local time. The band has promised that $1 from each ticket will be donated to the Poison Oak Project, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting and advocating for equity for the LGBTQ+ community, focusing on the needs of trans people.

Tour dates:

05/06 Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre $
05/23 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl &
06/06 Queens, NY @ Forest Hills Stadium @

$ = w/ Tilly and the Wall
& = w/ The Moldy Peaches
@ = w/ Built To Spill

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