Darkly genius indie artist Kristen Hersh will release her next solo album, "Sky Motel," this summer on 4AD. The former Throwing Muses front woman plays most of the instruments on the 12-track set, which is due July 6 in North America and June 28 in the UK, Europe, and Australia. First single "Echo" will be released June 14 in the U.K.; the track will not be commercially issued in the States.

Hersh will head out on the road in June and July, playing select shows and festivals in Europe; in September, she'll tour the U.S. Joining her on all dates will be old band mates David Narcizo (drums) and Robert Rust (keyboards), as well as former Belly guitarist Tom Gorman.

Real Audio previews of "Sky Motel" are now available on Hersh's Web site, www.throwingmusic.com. Each week a different track from the album will be posted in its entirety. The site is also home to Hersh's "Works In Progress" subscription program, which each month offers an unreleased Hersh track in the MP3 format.

Hersh, whose band Throwing Muses enjoyed a cultlike following in the late '80s and early '90s, released two albums last year. The first, "Strange Angels" (Ryko), met with critical acclaim, while the second, a very personal collection of Appalachian folk songs called "Murder, Misery And Then Goodnight," was available only via mail order or over the Internet.