New Music: The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter

Along with Grace Potter & The Nocturnals last night, I also got to see Josh Ritter, a singer from Idaho who opened for her. I'd never heard of the singer before, and was happy to find that he wasn't a bad singer, and that his music is somewhat in line with what I tend to listen to, although nothing really jumped out at me at the time.
I did a bit of digging and listened to a couple tracks from his latest album, and, now having heard some of the tracks live, really enjoyed the studio cuts this time around.

Ritter's band depends on the piano and guitar for much of the drive behind the music, while Josh himself fronts everything with his voice, which really fits with his own catagory. I don't think that I've really heard anyone with a voice quite like his, somewhat raspy with a good sound. Together, the band holds itself well with all the elements, and there's some good tracks off of the album. They looked like they were having a really fun time on stage before the Nocturnals, and Josh himself looked like he had fun with his duet with Grace during her set.

Their latest album, The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter, comes out tomorrow, and it's a decent album to pick up, especially in the indie/alternative rock scene. There's a couple of weak songs there - the album is far from perfect, but there are a bunch that are a lot of fun to listen to, such as the three below.

Rumors - Josh Ritter
Mind's Eye - Josh Ritter
Right Moves - Josh Ritter

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