Bright Eyes Release New Song 'Rainbow Overpass'
The song is from their forthcoming tenth studio album, Five Dice, All Threes, out on September 20th.
By: Josh Sharpe Aug. 06, 2024
Bright Eyes have released a new track “Rainbow Overpass,” from their forthcoming tenth studio album, Five Dice, All Threes, out on September 20th via Dead Oceans. The bright, punky anthem is propelled by acoustic guitar, horns, and fist-pumping gang vocals featuring Alex Orange Drink of The So So Glos, the accelerating tempo like a speeding car driving off the eponymous rainbow overpass.
Of the new track, Bright Eyes’ frontman Conor Oberst says, “Alex and I wrote a lot of the songs together, but ‘Rainbow Overpass’ is the only one he gets [to sing] a verse. He’s kinda like my hype man, getting a little Beastie Boys on the s! They grew up on punk rock and the Beasties, so there are a lot of little bursts of other voices. I like that. It creates energy. Sometimes music can feel flat until you get into a live situation, when there’s adrenaline and raw energy. Instead of working in reverse, where that happens as we tour, I was trying to get some of that energy onto the record.”
The new track’s release follows “Bells & Whistles,” which was released in June to critical acclaim and immediately landed on national radio playlists globally.
In addition to the slew of European and US tour dates announced in July, the band has announced a massive North American tour for 2025 which will wind up the West Coast before canvasing the South and the East Coast before concluding in the Midwest. Artist Presale will take place on Wednesday, Aug 7 at 10AM local time with general on-sale on Friday, Aug 9 at 10AM local time. Full routing below.
Self-produced, and recorded at ARC Studios, in Omaha, Nebraska, Five Dice, All Threes is a record of uncommon intensity and tenderness, communal exorcism and personal excavation. These are, of course, qualities that fans have come to expect from Bright Eyes, nearly three decades into their career. The tight-knit band of Conor Oberst, Mike Mogis and Nate Walcott tends to operate in distinct sweeping movements: each unique in its sound and story but unified by a sense of ambition and ever-growing emotional stakes. The beloved band’s 10th studio album features guest performances from long time friends Cat Power, The National’s Matt Berninger and The So So Glos’ Alex Orange Drink. Even with this rich history behind them, these new songs exude a visceral thrill like nothing they have attempted before. Conor has always sung in a voice that conveys a sense of life-or-death gravity. At times throughout Five Dice, All Threes, you may feel worried for him; other times, he may seem like the only one with the clarity to get us out of this mess
As is usual with Bright Eyes’ work, the music comes loaded with subtext that invites deep listening—the signature touch of a band who has always honored the album as its own exalted work of art. With the new songs the trio embrace the elusive quality that has made them so enduring and influential across generations and genres, bringing their homespun sound from an Omaha bedroom to devoted audiences around the world. In Conor’s songwriting lies a promise that our loneliest thoughts and feelings can take on grander shapes when passed between friends, blasted through speakers, or shouted among crowds. Five Dice, All Threes is as confessional and unguarded as Conor has sounded in years. Throughout these timelessly constructed yet unabashedly modern songs, he earns his place among a rare class of songwriters who have grown more fearless and boundless with age.
Bright Eyes on Tour:
Thursday, September 19 - Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Steel (SOLD OUT)
Saturday, September 21 - Chicago, IL - Riot Fest
Sunday, September 22 - Omaha, NE - Steelhouse Omaha
Friday, October 11 - Oakland, CA - Fox Theater
Saturday, October 12 - Los Angeles, CA - The Bellwether (SOLD OUT)
Sunday, October 13 - Las Vegas, NV - Best Friends Forever Music Festival
Sunday, November 10 - Wolverhampton, UK - Wulfrun Hall
Monday, November 11 - London, UK - O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire
Tuesday, November 12 - Nijmegen, Netherlands - Doornroosje
Wednesday, November 13 - Ghent, Belgium - Ha Concerts
Thursday, November 14 - Cologne, Germany - Carlswerk Victoria
Friday, November 15 - Berlin, Germany - Tempodrom
Saturday, November 16 - Weissenhauser Strand, Germany - Rolling Stone Beach
Monday, November 18 - Stockholm, Sweden - FållanY
Tuesday, November 19 - Oslo, Norway - Parkteatret
Thursday, January 16 - Phoenix, AZ - The Van Buren
Saturday, January 18 - Del Mar, CA - The Sound
Sunday, January 19 - Santa Ana, CA - The Observatory
Monday, January 20 - Sacramento, CA - Ace of Spades
Tuesday, January 21 - Eugene, OR - McDonald Theatre
Thursday, January 23 - Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom
Friday, January 24 - Seattle, WA - Paramount Theatre
Saturday, January 25 - Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
Sunday, January 26 - Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
Wednesday, February 26 - Fayetteville, AR - George's Majestic Lounge
Thursday, February 27 - Austin, TX - ACL Live at the Moody Theater
Friday, February 28 - Dallas, TX - The Factory in Deep Ellum
Saturday, March 1 - San Antonio, TX - Aztec Theater
Sunday, March 2 - Baton Rouge, LA - Chelsea’s Live
Monday, March 3 - Jacksonville, FL - Florida Theatre
Wednesday, March 5 - St. Petersburg, FL - Jannus Live
Friday, March 7 - Orlando, FL - The Beacham Theater
Saturday, March 8 - Atlanta, GA - Tabernacle
Sunday, March 9 - Knoxville, TN - The Mill & Mine
Monday, March 10 - Richmond, VA - The National
Thursday, March 13 - Asheville, NC - The Orange Peel
Friday, March 14 - Pelham, TN - The Caverns
Monday, March 17 - Memphis, TN - Minglewood Hall
Tuesday, March 18 - Little Rock, AR - The Hall
Thursday, March 20 - Tulsa, OK - Cain’s Ballroom
Friday, March 21 - Kansas City, MO - Uptown Theater
Saturday, March 22 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
Thursday, April 3 - Madison, WI - The Sylvee
Friday, April 4 - St. Paul, MN - Palace Theatre
Tuesday, April 8 - Detroit, MI - Royal Oak Music Theatre
Wednesday, April 9 - Cleveland, OH - Agora Theatre
Thursday, April 10 - Toronto, ON - History
Friday, April 11 - Buffalo, NY - Buffalo Riverworks
Sunday, April 13 - Portland, ME - State Theatre
Thursday, April 17 - Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Paramount
Friday, April 18 - Boston, MA - House of Blues
Saturday, April 19 - Philadelphia, PA - The Met Philadelphia
Sunday, April 20 - Washington, D.C. - The Anthem
Tuesday, April 22 - Pittsburgh, PA - Roxian Theatre
Wednesday, April 23 - Newport, KY - MegaCorp Pavilion
Thursday, April 24 - Louisville, KY - Old Forester's Paristown Hall
Friday, April 25 - Indianapolis, IN - Egyptian Room at Old National Centre
Saturday, April 26 - West Des Moines, IA - Val Air Ballroom
Five Dice, All Threes Tracklist:
1. Five Dice
2. Bells and Whistles
3. El Capitan
4. Bas Jan Ader
5. Tiny Suicides
6. All Threes
7. Rainbow Overpass
8. Hate
9. Real Feel 105°
10. Spun Out
11. Trains Still Run On Time
12. The Time I Have Left
13. Tin Soldier Boy
*Featured Artists: Cat Power (“All Threes”), Alex Orange Drink (“Rainbow Overpass”), Matt Berninger (“The Time I Have Left”)
Photo Credit: Nik Freitas
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