Maeri Ferguson

Anyone who has ever sat in front of a computer screen knows it well: that spinning multicolor wheel that seems to imply an infinite period of waiting. Singer-songwriter Dougie Poole has managed to turn this little symbol into the ultimate metaphor for his third album, The Rainbow Wheel of Death.

These days, the word “authentic” gets thrown around with such frequency, it can ring empty. But it is fitting when describing Benjamin Dakota Rogers, whose new album, Paint Horse, is a collection of genuine folk songs with none of the put-ons and all the experience to back it up. Written

Like so many artists, JD Clayton went to Nashville to make his music dreams come true. But it was his Arkansas roots that ultimately helped him home in on his sound: no-frills and anchored by his true-blue twang. On his debut full-length album, Long Way From Home, Clayton’s warm,

“It’s who you become in the end,” Isabel Olive sings on “Miranda,” from Ancestral Home, her latest collection of songs under the moniker Half Gringa. Across five tracks, Olive is a seeker of selfhood, carving identity from passed-down stories, truths and lore from the past, and, of course, ancestors.

EDITOR’S NOTE: As the end of the year approaches, we’re taking a look back at albums we weren't able to review when they first came out. Cerulean was released in June via Soundly Music. Though what Ken Yates was going through while writing his fourth album,