“This whole album might be a quarterlife crisis,” bursts Judah Akers at the outset of Judah & the Lions’ third LP. The Nashville trio blasts toward anthemic folk-pop, but as with 2016’s Folk Hop N’ Roll, they combine the worst elements from various genres. Pep Talks is all catharsis, with a barrage of racing lyrics or shouted repetitive lines that can’t obscure a lyrical shallowness even in slower moments like “Pictures” with Kacey Musgraves. The 18-track album’s back half skitters even further afield on skuzzy beats from “Don’t Mess With My Mama” and the watered pop of “Goofballerz” and “Joyboy.” (Saturday, 5pm, T-Mobile stage)

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This article appears in October 4 • 2019.

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Doug Freeman has been writing for the Austin Chronicle since 2007, covering the arts and music scene in the city. He is originally from Virginia and earned his Masters Degree from the University of Texas. He is also co-editor of The Austin Chronicle Music Anthology, published by UT Press.