Spacecase Records

True Green’s name comes from medieval nun Hildegard of Bingen’s idea of viriditas, and also a lawn care company. Minneapolis-based songwriter Dan Hornsby is a novelist, too—his latest, Sucker, came out on Anchor in July—and these nine songs put his storytelling skills on full display. The title track’s narrator accounts for his ten-year debauched fugue. “Midtown Matt” follows barflies who always threaten to leave town but never quite get their shit together. “Comeback Special” is about a waiter who thinks he’s the reincarnation of Elvis. Tailer Ransom offers beautifully textured synths, mean guitar fills, piano, and banjo throughout the record, and Texas songwriter Megan Storie and Midlake’s Jesse Chandler make striking cameos. Mixed and mastered by Matt Qualls at Easley McCain Recording, the warm, wobbly songs evoke some of the venerable bands who recorded there, especially Silver Jews, Pavement, and Guided By Voices.