Josh Ritter News

Presented by Live Nation and KCRW. Band: Glen Hansard, Marketa Irglova, accompanied by the Frames: Joe Doyle, Colm Mac Con Iomaire, Rob Bochnik, Johnny Boyle.

In the very same Idaho town that bore folk darling Josh Ritter, another upstart songwriter was spending his early days honing his craft by bouncing between different bands before moving from Moscow to a stronger music scene in Portland in 2004.

IDAHO'S finest Josh Ritter makes a welcome return to Belfast, performing at the Empire Music Hall as part of the Ulster Bank Belfast Festival at Queen's. Josh will be returning for an intimate show, along with the Love Cannon String Band, on Sunday, October 18.

A A By GREG HAYMES A A Special to the Times Union A A NORTH ADAMS, Mass. - The massive MASS MoCA is best known for its cutting edge visual art, but the performing arts have also been well-represented during the decade the museum has been open, and on Saturday, the old factory-turned-arts-center hosted its first MASS MoCA Music Festival.

All Songs Considered continues its celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Newport Folk Festival, now known as George Wein's Folk Festival 50.

Audiences might think they have singer/songwriter Josh Ritter pegged, but his devotion to musical history has positioned him as a chameleon of Americana.

Every Sunday, I'll be posting an entry in my Albums of the Aughts series, highlighting 50 great or near-great albums released since Jan.

Every Sunday, I'll be posting an entry in my Albums of the Aughts series, highlighting 50 great or near-great albums released since Jan.

Every Sunday, I'll be posting an entry in my Albums of the Aughts series, highlighting 50 great or near-great albums released since Jan.

Every Sunday, I'll be posting an entry in my Albums of the Aughts series, highlighting 50 great or near-great albums released since Jan.

A long time ago -- like 2007 to be precise -- Josh Ritter decided to lop off the tousled hair that thousands, maybe millions, of fans had dreamed of running their fingers through.

No matter how many times I see Josh Ritter, his mile-wide smile is stunning. The Cheshire grin was wholly justified Saturday: Ritter's confidence as a showman keeps growing.

Josh Ritter released what many call his masterpiece in 2006: His folk-rock opus The Animal Years is a meticulously constructed album of protest songs that seem somehow to exist both in the real world and in one of Ritter's own imagination.

A long time ago -- like 2007 to be precise -- Josh Ritter decided to lop off the tousled hair that thousands, maybe millions, of fans had dreamed of running their fingers through.

Let's get this out of the way: Josh Ritter is not the typically earnest, demure, soulful singer-songwriter that sends sensitive types swooning.

When Josh Ritter first showed up on radars outside his native Idaho, he was hailed as an heir to Townes Van Zandt, Nick Drake and, yep, Bob Dylan.

If written well, an album review, concert preview or Q & A with a questionably necessary, long-winded introduction can approximate the bare emotions evinced by music.

This week it's all about the music. Are you one of those people who constantly complain about there being no good music in town? Well get off your soap box and head to Soap Lake to watch 45th Parallel performing at the Run For The Sun Festival today and Saturday.

Cracker said it best in their '90s hit song Teen Angst: "What the world needs now is another folk singer, like I need a hole in my head." You can find them in any coffee shop in any town -- strumming an acoustic guitar and singing songs that don't transcend further than interrupting a passerby from his daily routine.

For touring bands, a bicycle may not be the optimal form of transportation, but for Portland, Ore.-based Blind Pilot guitarist/singer Israel Nebeker and drummer Ryan Dobrowski, riding velos and seeking adventure along the West Coast sent them soaring down the fast track to success.