Of Montreal Goes Travelin’

Beginning with a show in the band’s Athens, Ga., hometown, Of Montreal lays down a month-long road trip with stops across the country, including Philadelphia, Denver, Seattle, Los Angeles and Dallas.

Photo: Nina Barnes

Of Montreal will have new music to support. The band’s upcoming album, lousy with sylvianbriar, is set for an Oct. 8 release via Polyvinyl.  Word from Of Montreal leader Kevin Barnes is that the disc features a “new songwriting approach” and a “different recording method” along with a “fresh group of musicians.”

With Barnes on guitars, bass and vocals, Of Montreal’s lineup also features vocalist Rebecca Cash, Clayton Rychlik on drums and vocals, keyboardist Jojo Glidewell, Bob Parins playing pedal steel and bass, and Bennet Lewis on guitars and mandolin.

Recorded in three weeks on a 24-track tape machine at Barnes’ home studio in San Francisco, the album contains no gimmicks like pitch correction or computer enhancements.  It’s a back-to-basics approach with the band recording in the same room together as members came up with their own parts on the fly. 

“I knew I wanted the process to be more in line with the way people used to make albums in the late ’60s and early ’70s,” Barnes said. “I wanted to work fast and to maintain a high level of spontaneity and immediacy.  I wanted the songs to be more lyric driven, and for the instrumental arrangements to be understated and uncluttered.”

Here’s a taste of the new album.  Coming to us via the digital wizardry of SoundCloud is the recent single “Fugitive Air.”

Come mid-October Of Montreal takes lousy with sylvianbriar on the road.  Here are the dates.

Oct. 18 – Athens, Ga., 40 Watt Club
Oct. 22 – Carrboro, N.C., Cat’s Cradle
Oct. 23 – Washington, D.C., U Street Music Hall
Oct. 24 – Washington, D.C., U Street Music Hall
Oct. 25 – Philadelphia, Pa., Union Transfer
Oct. 26 – Cambridge, Mass., Middle East Nightclub
Oct. 27 – Brooklyn, N.Y., Music Hall Of Williamsburg
Oct. 28 – Brooklyn, N.Y., Music Hall Of Williamsburg
Oct. 29 – Cleveland, Ohio, Beachland Ballroom & Tavern
Oct. 30 – Chicago, Ill., Lincoln Hall
Oct. 31 – Madison, Wis., Majestic Theatre
Nov. 1 – Minneapolis, Minn., Cedar Cultural Center
Nov. 2 – Omaha, Neb., The Waiting Room
Nov. 3 – Denver, Colo., Marquis Theater
Nov. 4 – Salt Lake City, Utah, Urban Lounge
Nov. 5 – Boise, Idaho, El Korah Shriners
Nov. 6 – Seattle, Wash., Neumos
Nov. 7 – Portland, Ore., Wonder Ballroom
Nov. 8 – San Francisco, Calif., Great American Music Hall
Nov. 9 – San Francisco, Calif., Great American Music Hall
Nov. 11 – Los Angeles, Calif., Largo
Nov. 12 – Tucson, Ariz., Club Congress
Nov. 14 – Dallas, Texas, Trees
Nov. 15 – Austin, Texas, The Mohawk
Nov. 16 – New Orleans, La., The Howlin’ Wolf New Orleans
Nov. 17 – Atlanta, Ga., Terminal West 

La Luz appears Oct. 28-Nov. 17.

Some shows go on sale this week.  Check out OfMontreal.net for more information.