Jess Cornelius - CARE/TAKING (White LP Vinyl)

Jess Cornelius writes arresting songs that capture the disorientation and endless possibilities of being in flux. On her sophomore album CARE/TAKING, the New Zealand-raised, Los Angeles-based artist sings of personal upheaval with striking lucidity and emotional nimbleness. Where Cornelius' 2020 debut Distance found her untethered moving across continents and entering a solo career after a long stint fronting the Australian band Teeth & Tongue, this LP has the songwriter firmly established in her California home but no less at a crossroads. Over 10 intricate and immediate songs, she grapples with squaring global crises and insecurities with the transformations and responsibilities in her life. It's searching indie rock that's as biting as it is comforting. The lush arrangements throughout the LP, which feature glistening keys and saxophone, all thread the needle between being knotty and brooding to breezy and stunning. Her melodies careen into unexpected places but they're all anchored with a keen sense of timelessness.

Side A: Tui Is a Bird (The Work) Back to the Mainland People Move On Desire The Surgeon Side B: Dying Cloud Postcard To the Desert Laps in the Drugstore When I Was Alive