Horti

By design, Jeff "Horti" Hortillosa's Corpus Callosum doesn't rest within one genre. Foretold by the title of his solo disc, the Whiskey Shivers guitarist invites listeners into his brain, and bluegrass ain't on it. Instead, there's a mélange of lush, beachy guitar licks ("Falling Down"), a cabaret ditty led by jazz clarinet ("You Can't Make Me Pie"), and a tropicalia ode ("Beer and Condoms") whose whistled melody sticks. Country roots also shine through the floorboards. "Pretty and Stupid" features blooming pedal steel and loping fiddle, and "Girls Named Katie & Girls Named Lynn" is a tongue-in-cheek two-stepper. Horti's tour de cranium doesn't follow any rules, but we're ready for another visit.