Singer/songwriter M. Ward [ tickets ] will try to build on a year that saw the California native's most recent album, "Post War," appear on many critics' year-end lists with a few concerts starting in late January.

The singer, whose full first name is Matt, recently completed work on his first motion-picture soundtrack. Ward composed and performed the music for (and has a small part in) director Martin Hynes' indie film "The Go-Getter," which will make its premiere later this month at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, UT.

Ward will perform Jan. 21 in Park City as part of the festival's "Sundance Celebrate Music & Film" component.

The singer will then kick off a short run of shows from one side of the country to the other Jan. 26 in New York, finishing up a little more than a week later with a pair of California gigs featuring support from singer/songwriter Victoria Williams.

"Post-War," Ward's fourth studio album and third for the Merge label, hit stores in August. The disc was recorded in producer/musician Mike Coykendall's attic in Portland, OR, and mixed by Mike Mogis in Lincoln, NE. Several guest performers appear on the disc, including singer/songwriters Neko Case and Jim James (My Morning Jacket), as well as Coykendall and Mogis.

In addition to his own recording work, Ward appears as a guest guitarist on My Morning Jacket's latest studio album, "Z," and also the debut album from Giant Sand frontman Howe Gelb's latest side project, "Arizona Amp and Alternator," which was released in September.