Mute has announced the first José González North American solo tour since 2008. González will play a few sundry shows in December and February, in Thailand and Spain respectively, before kicking off his full tour on March 2 in Berlin. He’ll perform throughout Europe for most of March and then begin the North American leg in Philadelphia’s Union Transfer on April 6, and carry on to perform in most major cities including New York, Toronto, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Iceland’s singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Ólöf Arnalds, will be the support act for the entire tour.

González will be touring in support of Vestiges & Claws, his first album in seven years. It will be released on February 17, 2015 and was produced by González in his home as well as Svenska Grammofonstudion, both in Gothenburg, Sweden. It consists of years’ worth of musical sketches that in other hands might naturally sprawl wildly in sound and style.

The result is an album that is less purist, less strict. One can find traces of inspired protest songs and eccentric folk rock on Vestiges & Claws: staccato grooves and rhythms, frustration and optimism. It’s a collection that is simultaneously confident, free and uncertain.

You can Watch the video for “Every Age” below.

González has been busy in the seven years since the release of his last solo record, In Our Nature. Besides making two Junip albums and touring the world both solo and with the band, González has been active in the studio in various contexts. One project in 2013 was José’s input to the The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty soundtrack, directed by and starring Ben Stiller. Besides previously released José and Junip songs, the film also contains exclusively written material as well as an interpretation of John Lennon’s “#9 Dream.” Earlier this autumn, the AIDS awareness group, Red Hot Organization, released the compilation Master Mix: Red Hot + Arthur Russell, where González and guests play a very groovy, sax-laden version of Russell’s “This Is How We Walk On The Moon.”

Vestiges & Claws Tracklisting

1. With The Ink Of A Ghost
2. Let It Carry You
3. Stories We Build, Stories We Tell
4. The Forest
5. Leaf Off / The Cave
6. Every Age
7. What Will
8. Vissel
9. Afterglow
10. Open Book

José González 2014 Tour
December
19-21 – Chonburi, Thailand – Chonburi Wonderfruit Festival

February
18 – Madrid – La Riviera
19 – Lisbon – CCB
20 – Barcelona – Bona Nit Barcelona at l’auditori

March
2 – Berlin – Heimathaften
4 – Prague -­ Lucerna Music Bar
5 – Vienna – Ottakringer Brauerei
6 – Munich – Muffathalle
7 – Zurich – Kaufleuten
8 – Frankfurt – Mousonturm
9 – Amsterdam – Melkweg Oude Saal
10 – Paris – Cabaret Sauvage
11 – London – Scala
13 – Coventry – Warwick Arts Centre
14 – Manchester – Academy 2
16 – Brussels – Cirque Royal
17 – Hamburg – Uebel & Gefarlich

April
6 – Philadelphia – Union Transfer
7 – Washington, DC – 930 Club
10 – New York – Webster Hall
11 – Boston – Paradise
12 – Montreal – Corona Theatre
13 – Toronto – Phoenix Concert Theatre
14 – Chicago – Lincoln Hall
16 – Minneapolis – Cedar Cultural Center
18 – Madison – Majestic Theatre
21 – Englewood – Gothic Theatre
22 – Salt Lake City – The Depot
24 – Portland – Wonder Ballroom
25 – Vancouver – Imperial
27 – San Francisco – Bimbo’s 365 Club
29 – Los Angeles – The Regent