Album Review: Whitney - Light Upon The Lake

Forming from the ashes of indie-rockers Smith Westerns, Whitney features ex-Unknown Mortal Orchestra member Julien Ehrlich on drums/vocals and Foxygen frontman Jonathan Rado on recording duties.

The new Chicago six-piece Whitney nonetheless find their own voice from the outset, placing reflective, ruminative lyrics over crisp, mostly upbeat country-rock with requisitely gorgeous results. Ehrlich's cruisy falsetto is reminiscent of Neil Young in places, prevalent horn flourishes add tinges of soul to proceedings and it's all beautifully laidback and wistful, like the Laurel Canyon sound of yore filtered through a '90s indie-rock lens.