Now we all knew M. Ward was an all-around great artist, and quite the talented guy–but to be honest, he was just one of those guys who didn’t quite pierce the thick outer skin you build up when you listen to music for a living. But then he was on Letterman and pretty much blew our minds…So the news of his upcoming solo jaunts is pretty freaking exciting. Here’s the dates: 26-Jan New York, NY @ Town Hall 27-Jan Toronto,...
M. Ward has always made a neat trick out of fusing certain varieties of American music—from elegiac Louis Armstrong riverboat rags to wistful Beach Boys blues—into something uniquely, compellingly his own. On Post-War, his latest album for Merge Records, Ward once again succeeds in conjuring a burnished nostalgia while remaining rooted firmly in the here-and-now. Whereas his earlier efforts have been marked by a creeping hour-before-dawn vibe, Post-War sounds open and happy, the product of a group of friends drinking...