Good news out of Old 97's camp today, as the band has announced that The Grand Theatre, Volume One, has earned the band its career high marks in Billboard chart position. In its first week on the charts, the disc placed at No. 83 in the Billboard 200 Albums Chart, No. 25 in the Rock Chart, No, 15 in the Independent Chart and a solid No. 8 on the Tastemaker Chart, whatever that is.

No surprise, really: We're not the only ones who've championed  the new release as a major return to form for the Dallas mainstays--Spin gave the disc a solid 7/10 rating, and Rolling Stone gave the disc a similar 3.5/5 score.

Says frontman Rhett Miller in the press release announcing as much: "The Old 97's have hit a great stride, found our second wind."

We agree.

Oh, and there's some other news to announce, too, from the band today: Turns out the band will be heading up the House of Blues' New Year's Eve festivities this year, making an already cluttered night (Slobberbone/Centro-matic/RTB2 at the Kessler, Jonathan Tyler & The Northern Lights at the Granada and Ishi at Trees) even busier.

Check the full presser after the jump.

OLD 97'S ACHIEVE CAREER HIGH CHART DEBUT WITH THE GRAND THEATRE VOLUME ONE North American Tour Kicks Off In December Including A New Year's Eve Show In The Band's Hometown Of Dallas October 25, 2010 - Los Angeles, CA - Old 97's critically acclaimed new album, The Grand Theatre Volume One, debuted on the Billboard Top 200 with the bands highest chart position to date.  The record received a 7 out of 10 rating in Spin Magazine and 3 ½ stars in Rolling Stone with Twangville calling it "...one of this year's best albums."  The band spent release week in their home state of Texas introducing songs from the new record to enthusiastic audiences at packed shows and In-Store events in Dallas, Austin and Houston. Old 97's, legendary for their blistering live performances, have added dates to their upcoming winter tour in support of The Grand Theatre Volume One, including a newly announced New Year's Eve show in their hometown of Dallas, TX at the House of Blues. A full list of tour dates is below. The Grand Theatre Volume One's first single, "Every Night Is Friday Night (Without You)," which USA TODAY calls "part garage rock, part vintage British punk," continues to climb on radio station playlists with increased spins each week. The new record was produced by Salim Nourallah (the band's previous release, Blame It On Gravity) and engineered by Jim Vollentine (Spoon). While recording The Grand Theatre Volume One, the band set out to capture the energy of their famous live performances.  They spent a week of pre-production recording the new songs completely live at the nearly 100-year-old (and reportedly haunted) Dallas venue Sons of Hermann Hall.  After deciding what new songs made the cut for proper studio recording, the band moved the production to Treefort Studios in Austin, TX.  Basic tracks for these studio sessions were recorded mostly live, resulting in an album that is as vibrant, immediate and sweat drenched as their praised live show.  Frontman Rhett Miller stated, "The Old 97's have hit a great stride, found our second wind.  I feel like we found the secret to capturing the live energy people rave about after they see us play."

TOUR DATES: Thurs Dec 2    Oxford, MS        The Lyric Fri Dec 3    Little Rock, AR    Revolution Music Room Sat Dec 4    Nashville, TN        Mercy Lounge Sun Dec 5    Charleston, WV    Mountain Stage Tues Dec 7    Towson, MD        Recher Theatre Wed Dec 8    New York, NY        Bowery Ballroom Thurs Dec 9    New York, NY        Bowery Ballroom Fri Dec 10    Brooklyn, NY        Music Hall of Williamsburg Sat Dec 11    Philadelphia, PA    Theatre of Living Arts Fri Dec 31    Dallas, TX        House of Blues Wed Jan 19    San Diego, CA    Belly Up Thurs Jan 20    Santa Ana, CA    Galaxy Theater Fri Jan 21    Los Angeles, CA    The Music Box at the Fonda Sat Jan 22    San Francisco, CA    The Fillmore Mon Jan 24    Seattle, WA        Shoxbox Tues Jan 25    Portland, OR        Wonder Thurs Jan 27    Boulder, CO        Boulder Theater Fri Jan 28    Lawrence, KS        Bottleneck *Additional dates to be announced

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