Luke Sweeney (of Wet Dreams Dry Magic and VOWS fame) released the second video from his new solo album, Ether Ore (read my interview with Luke about the album). The video, which Luke directed himself, features the lo-fi folk track “The Marrow” and seems to be a commentary of sorts on the perilous state of the American dream: with a montage of haunting images of poverty in San Francisco as a backdrop, Luke panhandles for “dreams” and plays a song to his real-life (and really adorable) baby girl, Pele.

“I never really thought about the song’s meaning until I started conceptualizing the video,” Luke says. “But I would say that the song is about the corruption that corrodes our purest intentions in pursuit of love, liberty & happiness…. The song has a clash of beauty and ugliness in the lyrics, of despair and hope, so the video is portraying a healthy dose of both sides of the coin throughout San Francisco in the context of a personal story.”

Recognizable San Francisco landmarks also feature prominently in the video, almost making the city another character in the tale he’s telling. That is no accident. “I think, as San Franciscans, our assumptions about the local quality of life are being constantly challenged,” Luke says. “I just wanted to depict a side of our reality that many often shove under the rug.”

Luke is about to take his tunes on the road, along with fellow itinerant troubadour Garrett Pierce. The “Ether Toure”, as he’s calling it, kicks off April 18 at the newly re-opened Eagle Tavern. Anna Hillburg, who just released a solo album of her own, opens that show. Full tour dates after the jump.

Luke Sweeney & Garrett Pierce 2013 Tour Dates
04/18 – San Francisco, CA – The Eagle Tavern (w/ Anna Hillburg)
04/19 – Los Angeles, CA – Ofuscube (w/ Moomaw)
04/20 – San Luis Obispo, CA – The Sanitarium
04/21 – Santa Cruz, CA – The Crepe Place*
04/22 – Arcata, CA – Little Red Lion
04/23 – Portland, OR – TBA
04/24 – Portland, OR – The Hazel Room (w/ Shelley Short)
04/25 – Davis, CA – KDVS house show
04/26 – Sacramento, CA – Bows & Arrows*
04/27 – Berkeley, CA – The Starry Plough* (w/ Glitz)

* Dates featuring Wet Dreams Dry Magic