Wake Owl
Wild Country (Rezolute Music)

Wake Owl’s bio states that the project’s main man, Colyn Cameron, splits his time between here and Portland, Oregon. (This might explain the act’s avian moniker, since down in Portlandia nothing is quite complete until you put a bird on it.) So Wild Country might only be a semi-local release, but it still counts.

The six-song EP makes for a nice introduction to Wake Owl and its shimmering folk-rock sound, which, at its most lush (as on “Grow”), finds steady-rolling acoustic guitar joined by just the right amount of burnished pedal-steel and rich electric organ. Cameron is at his most enjoyable on “Gold”, which boasts not only his best chorus, but also gorgeous interplay between violin and piano. I was surprised to discover that “Gold” was featured in an episode of Grey’s Anatomy—not because it isn’t worthy of prime-time exposure, but because I had no idea that show was still on the air. Is Dr. McDreamy still on it?