This morning, the official Josh Ritter website announced the title of his next album, the followup to the Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter: So Runs The World Away. Along with the announcement was a free MP3 download for a track called Change Of Time. The new album is due out on May 4th in the United States, or if you live in Ireland, it will be out just a couple days before, on April 23th.
This is rather exciting news for me, as both The Animal Years and The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter were both two absolute favorites of mine over the past couple of years. The times that I have seen him in concert have likewise blown me away with his energy, songwriting and sound. The last concert that I saw, over at the University of Vermont, Ritter dropped a number of new songs into his set, and in all likelihood, these songs, Orbital and The Curse, will make it onto this record. (Especially The Curse, given the mummy artwork on his webpage).
What has impressed me the most thus far with the new songs that I have heard is the story. WIth his prior albums, Ritter has demonstrated an ability to tell a fantastic couple of stories, whether it's from the American West, life after a nuclear war, or a long distance romance, and the trend doesn't seem to have vanished with this album, which is most exciting. While the songs that I've heard thus far are a bit calmer than his usual fair, I'm really hoping that we'll get some more of his energy as well.
You can listen to the new track here, at Youtube or download the song by going here. To support the album, Ritter is going back out on tour between the US and Ireland:
April 24th - Galway, IRE
The Live Lounge at The Radisson Hotel
April 25th - Limerick, IRE
Dolans Warehouse
April 27th - Dublin, IRE
Grand Canal Theatre
April 29 – Belfast, N. IRE
Festival Marquee at CQAF
[ On-sale Feb 26th ]
April 30th - Kilkenny, IRE
Ormonde Hotel, Kilkenny (8.30pm)
Kilkenny Rythym & Roots festival
May 7th - Philadelphia, PA
Theater of Living Arts
May 8th - Washington, DC
9.30 Club
May 10th - Baltimore, MD
Ram's Head Live
May 11th - Durham, NC
Carolina Theatre
May 13th - Atlanta, GA
Variety Playhouse
May 15th - Chicago, IL
The Vic Theatre
May 19th - New York, NY
Town Hall
May 20th - New York, NY
Town Hall [SOLD OUT]
Lillian, Egypt - Josh Ritter
The Curse - Josh Ritter
