Muchacho - Phosphorescent (2013)

Ideated from: my best-of-month lists for October over the years. also on the Oct 2013 list: Tim Hecker, Lily Afshar

Matthew Houck records as Phosphorescent. He has multiple great albums, but this one might be his best. There is so much majestic sprawl here, running from lush piano ballads to indie-flavored and even electronic-tinged sounds. It has a country sort of ethos to the lyrics, but calling it “a country album” would be way too simplistic. The instrumentation, arrangements, and lyrical content are so much more than a lot of country singers, even though it still has that melancholy that marks out the best of that genre.

Tracks I Liked

Song For Zula - quotes Ring Of Fire, but builds an entirely different world out of it.

Ride On / Right On - An art rock approach to Americana

The Quotidian Beasts - a raging, shimmering epic