Two Saviors

Guitarist, singer, and songwriter released his first solo material, a three-song live album, in 2013. Backing him on the recording was soon-to-be bandmate , and both musicians' solo endeavors were soon sidelined to a significant degree by the success and continual touring of their band, , which formed the following year. did manage to put out an eponymous solo debut on the Austin-based label in 2018. It was an introduction for many to his rustic, winsome, empathic songs, which carry touches of the country and jazz manouche of the Texas native's formative playing. Performed live in the studio sans headphones and recorded to eight-track tape, the follow-up, , features multi-instrumentalist , guitarist , pianist/organist , and drummer , all prior live collaborators, as his backing band. The resulting set of 11 songs picks up where the debut left off, with a timeless feel and welcoming demeanor. The midtempo opener, "Pareidolia," starts things off with strummed acoustic guitar, piano-boosted rhythm section, vintage keys, and 's comforting yet brittle, lilting vocal delivery offering poetic lyrics that combine memories and formations in the clouds. The livelier "Second Sight," while it gets feet tapping, is just as gentle and features a bittersweet chorus that unfolds like a slow-moving yodel in multi-part harmony. Much of the album consists of similarly affectionate, soft-footed tracks, though the rustic rock of "Ham on White" ventures into feedback and distortion, and the rollicking, committed country of "Cannonball! Pt. 2" -- a sequel to 's "Cannonball!" -- takes advantage of (who performs solo as ) to double down on howling harmonies. These tracks are balanced by a few sparer intimate ones steeped in nostalgia and an uncertain hope. Throughout , 's uniquely kindly tenor conveys evocative phrases and settings that likewise stand apart from the crowd. ~ Marcy Donelson