Born in Louisiana but based in in Brooklyn, singer/songwriter Zachary Cale blends rural and urban on his seventh album Skywriting. Drawing from the tenets of classic singer/songwriter folk rock while hinting at the widescreen anthems of heartland-adjacent city dwellers, Cale paints with the usual rock band setup – keys, drums, bass, acoustic and electric guitars – but with the kind of conviction that keeps it sounding crisp and neoteric. Which is to say there’s not a lot of innovation going on here, but there doesn’t need to be. Cale is a thoughtful songwriter with a strong sense of craft and a barrel of heart – gussying up expertly constructed tunes like “Come On Easy,” “If I Knew the Name” and “Bigger Picture” wouldn’t serve his intent. Melodic, guileless and affecting.
