Pitchfork

Here is part of the plot description for the forthcoming film The Go-Getter, directed by Martin Hynes and starring Lou Taylor Pucci, Zooey Deschanel, and Jena Malone:

Left with an aching instinctual itch to explore America after a traumatic loss, a curious teenager named Mercer suddenly steals a car in Oregon and develops a life-altering telephonic connection with the forgiving and mysterious girl he took it from. As he sets out with her phone calls as guidance, Mercer's motives find focus as he travels across the postmodern highways of the former Wild West to seek self-knowledge and a sense of belonging."

Does that sound like a movie you'd want to see? No? What if you read that paragraph again...while listening to the rustic indie-folk stylings of M. Ward? You can just feel the tumbleweeds, the stares off into the distance, and the sexual tension, right?

Yeah, this movie is totally going to suck. But at least it'll have good music, as Ward has made his first foray into film music with the score for The Go-Getter. It premieres at the Sundance Film Festival later this month, and Ward will perform at the festival to celebrate.

But Park City is just one stop on Ward's current world tour. He's in Australia right now, with a couple of gigs in New Zealand scheduled for next week. Then, it's back to North America for a brief run of solo shows.

As previously reported, Merge will release Ward's "To Go Home" single on February 20. It features guest appearances by such luminaries as Neko Case, Jim James of My Morning Jacket, and Howe Gelb of Giant Sand.

M. Ward dates:

01-02 Fremantle, Australia - Fly by Night Club
01-04 Brisbane, Australia - The Zoo
01-05 Sydney, Australia - The Metro
01-06 Sydney, Australia - Spiegeltent
01-07 Sydney, Australia - Spiegeltent
01-08 Sydney, Australia - Spiegeltent
01-10 Auckland, New Zealand - The Dogs Bollix
01-11 Wellington, New Zealand - San Francisco Bath House
01-21 Park City, UT - Kimball Arts Center (Sundance Film Festival)
01-26 New York, NY - Town Hall
01-27 Toronto, Ontario - Mod Club
01-29 Chicago, IL - Park West *
02-02 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre #
02-04 San Francisco, CA - Bimbo's #

* with Freakwater
# with Victoria Williams