Ireland loves Josh Ritter. Now with his recent tour, the singer hopes the U.S. will show him the same kind of affection.

The Idaho native has built a strong fan base outside of the country over the last eight years. Ritter is working hard to expand it throughout his home country on the heels of a new album, released in August.

“”No one can expect that the world will open up for them without hard work,”” Ritter said.

Ritter found an interest in songwriting while at Oberlin College in Ohio. After graduation, he moved to Boston, where he hoped to find inspiration. Early on, Ritter found a home in the music of Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen.

As he created his own music, a style evolved, wrapped around innovative lyrics, catchy beats and a husky voice that automatically captures listeners’ attention.

Ritter began his career by releasing two albums on his own, Josh Ritter in 1999 and the 2001 follow-up, The Golden Age of Radio.

After these albums got kicked around, Ritter finally signed with an indie label.

Ritter is now on his fifth album, The Historical Conquest of Josh Ritter, which he released with the intention of coming across as someone not his typical self.

“”All I really know is that each of us has more than one face we show to the world,”” Ritter said. “”Each of those faces has its own voice and each of those voices has a multitude of stories. It would be a shame not to explore those stories.””

Unlike his last record, The Animal Years, in which he tried to make everything little thing perfect, Ritter has focused Conquests around capturing emotions and passions. He did so by keeping songs raw, not re-recording them.

But like his other records, this one keeps the folk style mixed with rock and roll. This collides with blustery keyboards, strings and horns.

“”My music is basically rock and roll with lots of words,”” Ritter said.

Ritter is ready for his current tour and is looking forward to being back on the road with his band.

“”It’s lucky for my band and I that we love what we do,”” he said.

Josh Ritter will perform tomorrow at Plush, 340 E. Sixth St., with Luca and Eric Brachmann. The show begins at 9:30 p.m., with Ritter going on at 11:30 p.m. Tickets are $12.