In September 2021, Aoife O’Donovan shared a digital-only live recording of Bruce Springsteen’s 1982 album Nebraska, one of his most acclaimed. The intimate and uninterrupted live, solo-acoustic performance was recorded in Aoife’s living room in Brooklyn, NY, May 2020 from a livestream broadcast. 

Today, the GRAMMY Award-winning artist announces a limited edition worldwide indie exclusive vinyl release of Aoife O’Donovan Plays Nebraska out March 24 on Yep Roc Records. The album, limited to 1,000 copies worldwide, is now available for pre-order.

In her 20s, when first writing songs, O’Donovan “came back to the record as a collection of very finely crafted stories,” she tells the Boston Globe for a Winter Arts Preview of the tour. “It was this concept album in a way that was just so natural, it was so unforced. Springsteen found these characters and sort of placed them. It’s almost like the American Songbook or something. I just love the record; from the opening moments to the final cut, ‘Reason to Believe,’ it has this beautiful arc. It’s almost novelistic in that way.”

Watch O’Donovan perform “Open All Night” at last year’s FreshGrass Festival at Mass MoCA in North Adams, MA:

On March 15, O’Donovan will embark on a nine-city Spring tour performing Nebraska in its entirety alongside selections from her three-time Grammy-nominated album Age of Apathy; a complete list of dates follow below.  

In addition to the GRAMMY nominations, Age Of Apathy garnered critical acclaim, including Rolling Stone, who called the album “stunning,” NPR Music “a moving self-portrait,” and No Depression “an astounding accomplishment.” Pitchfork offered that O’Donovan “taps into the propulsion of prime Joni Mitchell,” and The New York Times praised the album’s “musical surprises: daring melodic leaps, unexpected chord progressions, [and] subtle rhythmic shifts.” 

Aoife O’Donovan Plays Nebraska Tour

March 15 – The Birchmere – Alexandria, VA*
March 16 – Bowery Ballroom – New York, NY*
March 17 – Sanders Theatre – Cambridge, MA*
March 18 – Stone Mountain Arts Center – Brownfield, ME+
April 12 – Stoughton Opera House – Stoughton, WI^
April 13 – SPACE – Evanston, IL^
April 14 – Turf Club – St. Paul, MN^
April 15 – The Sheldon Concert Hall – St. Louis, MO^
April 16 – The Basement East – Nashville, TN^

*performing the album Nebraska solo, with special guests Hawktail
+performing the album Nebraska solo
^performing the album Nebraska solo, with special guests The Westerlies

Additional Aoife O’Donovan Tour Dates
April 28 – Ryman Auditorium – Nashville, TN ~
May 30 – Dresden Music Festival – Dresden, DE
August 18-19 – Green Mountain Bluegrass – Manchester, VT
August 25 – The Long Road – Leicestershire, UK
August 26-27 – Tønder – Tønder, DK
September 9 – Moon River – Chattanooga, TN

~ supporting Nickel Creek