It's been nearly three years since Midlake's The Trials of Van Occupanther topped our 2006 year-end local-albums list and enjoyed critical praise from, oh, everybody else. So you can imagine how painful the wait for new material has been for fans of the Denton band. But today we get a glimmer of hope, if only a glimmer.


From a press release:

MIDLAKE SET TO RELEASE AMBITIOUS, ENGROSSING NEW ALBUM 'THE COURAGE OF OTHERS' - THEIR FIRST IN OVER THREE YEARS - ON FEB 2 VIA BELLA UNION

FIRST US TOUR DATES SINCE 2007 ANNOUNCED

On Feb 2, 2010 Bella Union will release the eagerly anticipated new Midlake album 'The Courage of Others,' the follow-up to the group's 2006 breakout 'The Trials of Van Occupanther.' The eleven original songs on 'Courage' were written by Tim Smith and produced by Midlake at their new custom-built studio in Denton, TX. The band's lineup remains: singer Tim Smith, Paul Alexander on bass, drummer McKenzie Smith, and guitarists Eric Pulido and Eric Nichelson.

'Courage' builds on the complex textures that made 'Van Occupanther' a touchstone, revealing breathtaking soundscapes and bygone eras. Equal parts intimate and epic, the album evokes a cloistered world of its own with dreamlike melodies, stunning vocal harmonies and ambitious arrangements.

Midlake took a two year break from the road to focus on the new album, but will tour extensively in 2010, with an initial string of dates and a return to SXSW - genesis of the 'Van Occupanther' groundswell in 2006 - already confirmed.

Reviewing one of their last U.S. shows in 2007, SPIN Magazine observed that the new song "Children of Grounds," which appears on 'Courage,' "pointed toward further ascension," with "brooding atmospherics and guitar-face rockin'."


"Out of step with anything else released in 2006" (Pitchfork), 'The Trials of Van Occupanther' proved to be a critical and artistic bellwether with Feist, Sufjan Stevens, and Andrew Bird among others, praising the album in interviews. "I wish more groups were this ambitious," Bird told Rolling Stone.

'The Courage of Others' tracklist:


Acts of Man
Winter Dies
Small Mountain
Core of Nature
Fortune
Rulers, Ruling All Things
Children of the Grounds
Bring Down
The Horn
The Courage of Others
In The Ground

Midlake 2010 tour dates so far (more to be announced soon):


Jan 5 Baton Rouge, LA Spanish Moon
Jan 6 Tallahassee, FL Engine Room
Jan 7 Orlando, FL The Social
Jan 8 St. Augustine, FL Cafe Eleven
Jan 9 Mt. Pleasant, SC Village Tavern
Jan 10 Asheville, NC Grey Eagle
Jan 11 Memphis, TN Hi-Tone
Jan 12 Little Rock, Rev Room

As you know, Midlake's members have been working hard on the new material for months and months at their private studio off Denton's square. We'll let you know as soon as we know of any sample tracks or streaming songs on the Webs.