It looks like Christmas came a bit early for Lady Antebellum, who spent some of their summer holed up in a recording studio tracking Christmas tunes for their first holiday album. The trio's new six-song EP, A Merry Little Christmas, is scheduled to be released Oct. 12.

“We recorded all of this in July,” the group's Dave Haywood tells Billboard, “so it was a little bit peculiar being in the studio in the middle of July in Nashville, Tennessee, 100 degrees outside, sweating, and doing a Christmas record. But we had a great time doing it. We had the studio all decorated . . . We brought everything we had from our houses and decorated and tried to get into the spirit. It was a fun experience.”

The album will feature "Silver Bells" and a new song, "On This Winter Night." The trio's Hillary Scott is no stranger to Christmas tunes. She also recorded a song entitled "Christmas Tonight" with singer/songwriter Dave Barnes for his upcoming holiday album.