Pitchfork

Seattle's lo-fi folk chameleon Damien Jurado has long been known for his versatility and consistently solid records. So when a message written on his website proclaims an upcoming pair of unnamed albums to be the "best ones yet", well, you'll have to forgive us for being jazzed. Jurado, coming off last year's On My Way to Absence, is wrapping up recording said material along with collaborator Eric Fisher and hoping for fall '06 and early '07 release dates, respectively.

In the meantime, Jurado kicks off a short Absence-fueled West Coast tour with Low and Rocky Votolato this weekend. Dates for Eastsidaz will come in the spring, when he'll hit the road with Clem Snide.

A simple hello:

02-25 Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge *
02-27 Salt Lake City, UT - In the Venue *
03-01 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress *
03-02 San Diego, CA - The Casbah *
03-03 Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour *
03-04 San Francisco, CA - The Independent *
03-16 Austin, TX - Redrum (SXSW) $
03-20 Dallas, TX - The Cavern #
03-21 Norman, OK - The Opolis #
03-22 Springfield, MO - Outland Ballroom #
03-26 Chicago, IL - Schubas #
03-27 Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon #
03-28 St. Paul, MN - Turf Club #
03-29 Ames, IA - Maintenance Shop #
03-31 Denver, CO - The Marquis Theater #
04-01 Provo, UT - The Velour #
05-02 Atlanta, GA - The Earl %
05-03 Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506 %
05-04 Arlington, VA - Iota %
05-05 Philadelphia, PA - World Café Live %
05-06 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge %
05-07 Cambridge, MA - Middle East %
05-09 Pittsburgh, PA - Club Café %

* with Low
$ with the Divorce, Charlemagne, Some by Sea, Stars of Track and Field, The Catch
# with Rocky Votolato
% with Clem Snide

In related news, Jurado has just made available a tour-only split 7" with Dolorean (the band, not Doc Brown's car). The record features Jurado covering Dolorean's "Traded for Fire" and Dolorean rocking Jurado's "hit" "Ghost of David". Only 600 copies were pressed and you can snag them via Jurado's website. That one right down there:

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