Music

Smith Westerns announce massive North American tour

by Ciaran Thompson

Smith Westerns, a Chicago band currently riding a wave of garage/psych hype, will release their sophomore album Dye It Blonde (Fat Possum) on January 18, the same day they will be starting a massive North American tour with a gig at Glasslands in Brooklyn.

Following their self-titled debut album from 2009, which was lauded in many garage rock circles, the band have taken a step up with Dye It Blonde and this time recorded in a studio with producer Chris Coady (Beach House, Yeah Yeah Yeahs), something garage/lo-fi bands such as Best Coast and Wavves tend to do after receiving a little bit of acclaim. Apparently the new album takes its influence from several ’90s Britpop acts like Oasis and Teenage Fanclub.

The band toured Europe with MGMT recently and from late January to early March they will be playing shows all across North America with Canadian dates scheduled in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal.

Check the tour dates and watch the video for the first single off Dye It Blonde entitled “Weekend” below.

Canadian Tour Dates:

February 16 – Biltmore Cabaret – Vancouver

February 28 – Horseshoe – Toronto

March 1 – La Sala Rossa – Montreal