With the Counting Crows and me it's a funny story. I love the song "A Long December" about everything. It's perfect: the text, the melody, the voice, the instrumentation, all touched me deeply. For everything else, I have never been able to warm up so pretty. Now 18 years have passed and I have yet again ventured an approach. And I'm now excited. "Honest rock music" sounds very overused, but it still fits. Everything feels very direct and authentic. Especially "eathquake Driver" and "Scarecrow" sound like recorded in one take and then leave so. Great! The other 7 songs are produced sophisticated. "Palisades Park" with just under 8.5 minutes for a second too long. Other highlights "god of ocean tides" and "Possibility days". Slightly weaker than the rest "Elvis went to Hollywood" and "dislocation". Everything sounds like a road trip through the USA (almost no text that does not mention cities or states from - preferably California) or the music from the book "Shotgun Love Songs" of Nickolas Butler. It is music full of longing for life.