Natalie Merchant continues the first week of her summer tour with two nights at The Town Hall in New York City, starting tonight. Earlier this year, around the release of her Nonesuch debut album, Leave Your Sleep, Merchant and her band performed a concert in Boulder, Colorado, for the NPR program eTown. The performance can now be heard on public radio stations across the United States on the latest episode of the show. It marks Merchant's first appearance on eTown in a decade. For more information and to find out when and where the show is playing near you, visit etown.org.

This past Tuesday night at the Calvin Theatre in Northampton, Massachusetts, Merchant and her eight-piece band gave what the local daily, The Republican, describes as "a near marathon performance" of songs from the new album, along with a double encore of songs from throughout her career. The Hartford Courant concert review says Merchant's "distinct voice remains an instrument of power and beauty" and her band "brilliantly supported the singer through the many genres she explores on this project," Leave Your Sleep. Courant reviewer Sheryl Hunter writes: "Merchant transformed this collection of lullabies, rhymes and serious poems into thoroughly enjoyable songs. At 46, Merchant has been performing for more than 30 years and seemed rejuvenated by this new material." Read more at courant.com.

Following Merchant's two New York performances, the tour heads next to Bethesda, Maryland, for a performance at the Strathmore this Sunday. The Washington Post's Express Night Out spoke with Merchant about the new album, which it describes as "her most ambitious effort to date ... a child-friendly record, partially conceived to encourage children to pursue reading poetry, but it also works as music for adults." Read the article at expressnightout.com.

For more information on Merchant's tour, go to nonesuch.com/on-tour.