Roger Harvey’s latest album released under his pseudonym was produced by Chris “#2” Barker of the pop-punk outfit Anti-Flag. The result is a very catchy mix of folk, alt-country, and chamber pop. One will either love or hate Harvey’s vocals, which call to mind Conor Oberst and hints of Dylan. The grand theme of the title track and the album’s first half is the beauty of youth in all its insecure and beatniked glory.  “Going Underground” and “Salt Lake City” are wonderfully powerful accounts of trying to overcome addiction.  The latter has a chorus (“And I wanna break free, I wanna be clean again”) that could prove to be an affecting rallying cry during Harvey’s live performances.

Once the Bright Eyes imitations cease, some interesting pop moments, including the radio friendly lament “Middle of Nowhere” (“You broke this heart, why’d you leave it sitting there?”) abound.   “Wooden Gods”, whose only embellishment is an organ, is simply and wonderfully dark and features some of the record’s most beautiful and poignant lyrics. The closer “So Disconnected” is far more intimate than anything else on the record, definitely worthy of a “Grey’s Anatomy” style epiphany.  File under Polyphonic Spree, and Feist’s “1-2-3-4”.

(Big Bullet Records, no address provided)