Listeners may struggle to describe the surprising blend of quirky rock, bedroom soul and sly wit featured on Van Hunt's sophomore album, On the Jungle Floor, out this week. But this unusual hybrid makes perfect sense for the twenty-nine-year-old Atlanta-based crooner, who was raised in Dayton, Ohio, the son of a painter and part-time pimp.

"What I've always wanted to do is put a piece of Sly Stone, a piece of Thelonious Monk and a piece of Richard Pryor in every song," says Hunt himself. "I'm those three cats."

While Hunt executive-produced his self-titled 2004 debut, which nabbed him a Grammy nomination in the Best Urban/Alternative category for the song "Dust," On the Jungle Floor was helmed by Bill Bottrell, known for his work with Sheryl Crow and Michael Jackson. Hunt believes his decision to work with a producer was actually a reflection of his increased confidence the second time around. "I felt like I was strong enough to go in and make a good record with anybody," he says.

There are several sonic surprises lurking among On the Jungle Floor's soul grooves. "Ride, Ride, Ride" is a garage-rocking rave-up, while Hunt's ethereal treatment of "No Sense of Crime" -- an obscure mid-Seventies song by Iggy Pop and Stooges guitarist James Williamson -- is even more unexpected. "I was in L.A. and saw that record [Kill City] and picked it up. And as soon as I heard that track, I was like, 'Yeah, that's me,'" Hunt says. "I loved the guitar melody, and I loved the lyric."

Hunt will spend this spring opening for R&B singers Anthony Hamilton and Heather Headley. But he's especially excited about the after-show club gigs he hopes to arrange at several tour stops. Dubbed the Midnight Violence . . . or Violins tour, the performances will be "a chance for me to really let my hair down" he says with a laugh. "Find some small club that's dark and sweaty and stanky and just play."

It will be tough for any show to top the experience Hunt had at last month's Grammys, however, as part of an all-star tribute to his idol, the reclusive Sly Stone.

"Man, I could walk away and be satisfied. I made two albums I'm proud of, I got nominated for a Grammy and I was onstage with Sly," he says. "In a nutshell."

Van Hunt tour dates:

4/6: Richmond, VA, Landmark Theater
4/7: Greensboro, NC, War Memorial Theater
4/8: Augusta, GA, Bell Auditorium
4/9: Charlotte, NC, Ovens Auditorium
4/12: Atlanta, Fox Theatre
4/13: North Charleston, SC, PAC
4/14: Birmingham, AL, Concert Hall
4/15: Houston, Verizon Theatre
4/16: Dallas, Nokia Live
4/19: Oakland, CA, Paramount Theatre
4/20: San Diego, 4th and B
4/21: Los Angeles, Gibson Amphitheater
4/22: Las Vegas, Aladdin Theatre
4/28: St. Louis, MO, Fox Theater
4/29: Nashville, Ryman Auditorium
4/30: Memphis, Orpheum Theatre
5/3: New York, Beacon Theater
5/4: Philadelphia, Tower Theater
5/5: Washington, DC, Constitution Hall
5/6: Washington, DC, Constitution Hall
5/7: TBD
5/10: Baltimore, Lyric Theatre
5/11: Cleveland, State Theatre
5/12: Detroit, Fox Theatre
5/13: Chicago, Chicago Theatre