We are full of first-looks today. Over at his excellent blog, Kanye West just posted a preview of what his Glow In The Dark Tour stage is gonna look like. Plus, he posted the following note, which, characteristically, is humble and keeps everything in perspective:

I can’t take it anymore. I have to show you guys a model of the stage. This is not a regular show. I tell people, hey, this show is gonna be crazy and they say, “I bet it is!”, BUT THEY HAVE NO IDEA! People expect me to come with innovative stuff… I’m sure a lot of people expect some neon, lower east side, post everybody dressing like the 80’s stuff or maybe the light up jacket from the Grammies, perhaps the robot girl and light spectacle they saw on Youtube from the European run. My friends…

NONE OF THE ABOVE!!! AN ENTIRELY NEW DESIGNED SET!!! ROBOT DESIGNED BY ACCLAIMED ARTIST CHRISTIAN COLON, CREATURE’S BY THE LEGENDARY JIM HENSON’S CREATURE SHOP, LIGHTING BY MARTIN PHILLIPS AND JOHN McGUIRE RESPONSIBLE FOR LAST YEARS FESTIVAL ANNIHILATOR, DAFT PUNK’S PYRAMID, POSSIBLY THE GREATEST LIGHT SHOW OF ALL TIME!! THANKS 2 PAUL, THOMAS AND GUYMAN FOR THE HOOK UP. SIDEBAR, MY SET DOES NOT HAVE A PYRAMID IN IT OR ANYWAY FEEL LIKE A BITE OF DAFT’S SHOW. WE’VE GOT HOLOGRAMS SHOT BY HYPE WILLIAMS!!!

SAM SPIELGAL, MIKE DEAN, JEFF BAXTER AND I HAVE SPENT A MONTH AND A HALF RE-ORCHESTRATING EVERY TRACK 2 FOLLOW A NARRATIVE. WE’VE LEARNED TO SURVIVE OFF OF 1 HOUR OF SLEEP A DAY!

And some additional news: Newsroom homeboy and Kanye West’s DJ A-Trak is NOT on this tour, deciding (quite courageously, we might add), to concentrate in the short-term on some of his projects, like his label, Fool’s Gold, and the upcoming album from Kid Sister. Cheers to that!

Glow in the Dark Tour dates, according to Kanye West‘s label:

· 4/16 – Seattle, WA @ Key Arena
· 4/18 – Sacramento, CA @ ARCO Arena
· 4/19 – San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion
· 4/20 – San Diego, CA @ Sports Arena
· 4/21 – Los Angeles, CA @ Nokia Theatre
· 4/25 – * Las Vegas, NV @ Red Rock Casino Resort Spa
· 4/26 – * Albuquerque, NM @ Journal Pavilion
· 4/27 – Denver, CO @ Pepsi Center
· 4/29 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Ford Center
· 4/30 – Austin, TX @ Frank Irwin Center
· 5/1 – Dallas, TX @ SuperPages.com Center
· 5/2 – Houston, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
· 5/4 – Atlanta, GA @ Gwinette Arena
· 5/5 – Tampa, FL @ Ford Amphitheatre
· 5/6 – Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena
· 5/8 – Charlotte, NC @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
· 5/9 – Raleigh, NC @ Walnut Creek Amphitheatre
· 5/10 – Washington, DC @ Nissan Pavilion
· 5/11 – Virginia Beach, VA @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
· 5/13 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
· 5/15 – Boston, MA @ Tweeter Center
· 5/16 – Hartford, CT @ North East Dodge Music Center
· 5/17 – Philadelphia, PA @ Susquehana Bank Center
· 5/18 – Scranton, PA @ Toyota Pavilion
· 5/20 – Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre
· 5/21 – Toronto, ON @ Molson Centre
· 5/22 – Auburn Hills, MI @ The Palace of Auburn Hills
· 5/23 – Chicago, IL @ United Center
· 5/24 – Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center
· 5/27 – Saskatoon, SK @ Credit Union Centre
· 5/29 – Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Palace
· 5/30 – Calgary, AB @ Saddledome

* indicates dates that include Rihanna on stage.