by Saddle Creek

Bright Eyes has set an April release for their next Saddle Creek album. Prior to that an EP titled Four Winds and featuring the first single and five b-sides will be released on March 6th. The record is titled Cassadaga and is due out April 10th, 2007.

After a busy year which included political events, diversity awards and an indie-only live album, the frontman Conor Oberst is promising a different lyrical focus for the new album, eschewing the politics which dominated previous efforts.

The band, which includes Conor Oberst, Mike Mogis and Nate Walcott along with members of Sleater-Kinney, and drummer Janet Weiss and M. Ward released two albums in 2005, the electric Digital Ash in a Digital Urn and the more traditional country-influenced I'm Wide Awake It's Morning. Those two sold a combined 622,000 copies.