Coming from the pout-pourri of indefatigable creativity that is the city of Chicago, Bill MacKay inevitably and historically ends up with a benign shadow hanging over him that inserts him into a kind of continuum at the intersection between the inventions of so-called post-rock – Gastr Del Sol, Pullman or Jim O’Rourke – and the songwriting tradition – Wilco, Freakwater, Sam Prekop or Jim O’Rourke. With an ever-pressing topicality, partly illuminated by the work of Drag City, MacKay’s Chicago is reflected in his adventurous spirit and continuous act, a reflection of the celebrated label – even beyond geographical coordinates. Between folk-tinged guitar songs, somewhere between the enchantment of Ben Chasny in his more earthy moments and the more luminous delicacy of Nick Drake, and instrumental landscapes of sun-drenched psychedelia punctuated by keys and percussion, ‘Locust Land’ – released earlier this year, following the highly recommended ‘Fountain Fire’ – is another sure document of a discreet but undeniably pertinent trajectory, which goes from experimentalism to song, with all the points in between, with grace. A superb guitarist, MacKay has also collaborated extensively, counting people equally aligned in this spirit such as Steve Gunn, Nathan Bowles or Ryley Walker among his colleagues, a clear demonstration of a natural syncretic ability to do things in a simple but always forceful and thoughtful way. BS

Camafeu is a village character. His imagination combines a late-night blur with surreal stories. Some are true, others not so much. The Head can’t tell the difference. Sometimes bouncy, sometimes melancholy, he always tells us where he’s been, leading us through an impressionistic set and an intricate landscape.