Album Review: Cass McCombs - A Folk Set Apart: Rarities, B-Sides And Space Junk, Etc

American musician Cass McCombs has been releasing quality albums for over a decade now, and A Folk Set Apart: Rarities, B-Sides & Space Junk, Etc. functions as a suitably eclectic introduction to his work.

Rather than compiling some of his more well known songs from the last seven albums, McCombs instead provides us with a selection of his material that never quite made the spotlight, also including alternative takes of older tunes in addition to five new recordings. The opening tracks recall his early beginnings in punk bands, before a more psychedelic influence enters his writing around Twins and Minimum Wage. It's fascinating to hear him subtly reincorporate these aesthetics into his later folk compositions, making this collection an effortlessly engaging listen.