Adams, Ryan - Animal

An almost entirely solo record, Adams wrote every song and played nearly every instrument himself. He produced and mixed it with Dror Mohar, and Randy Merrill mastered it at Sterling Sound. Long-time friend Daniel Clarke adds synths and Hammond B3, and J.C. Khul's saxophone carries the coda of "Soon".

These are night-time songs: neon, bar lights, wet streets, a car out on the 101. "Automatic Heart" is a wry confession, "Pass Me By" a plain-spoken ache, and "Jesus H" a horror-film walk through October streets. The record closes on the cold, wintry "Outsiders In". Lead single "Amethyst" is the album's most direct statement: a bruised, funny and defiant look at the music business, ageing and survival.

FFO: Whiskeytown, Wilco, Jason Isbell, Lucinda Williams, Bruce Springsteen, The War on Drugs