Kevin Bronson on May 26th, 2022

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Singer-songwriter Matt Moody crafts songs that embody the restlessness and wanderlust of a twentysomething who grew up in a Rust Belt City — suburban Cleveland in his case — and eventually cast his gaze west.

A relatively recent arrival in Los Angeles, he’s been releasing a series of singles from his forthcoming album, “Still a Kid in a Painted Sky,” out June 10. It may or may not be his debut album — upon moving west, Moody apparently scrubbed the interwebs of his previous releases, including a 2018 self-titled album, though the curious can still find some session videos of those songs online.

Anyway, “Painted Kid” offers some solid, unfussy Americana, adorned by horns and slide guitar, and lyrically expressive. “Puttin’ It Off” has the open-road feel of a Petty tune; “Cutting You Loose” is a straight-head song of departure; and “Party in the Valley” is pity-party set to a deceptively brisk beat. On the album closer, “Miller Lite,” Moody pops the top on feeling directionless, duetting with Hannah Stak on a bittersweet folk-country tune.

||| Stream: “Puttin’ It Off,” “Party in the Valley,” “Cutting You Loose” and “Miller Lite”