Avery Hellman is the rural California singer-songwriter behind the musical moniker ISMAY and the new album “Desert Pavement.” In a review, The Associated Press’ Steven Wine says Hellman and producer/multi-instrumentalist Andrew Marlin create rich colors and hazy atmospherics in a sweet and savory mix. Disembodied backing vocals dart in and out. Tricky fingerpicking patterns on guitar provides syncopation. Drums reverberate as though they’re inside drums themselves. Truly, Hellman possesses an affable alto that’s quirky, as is the perspective from which Hellman writes. “Sitting alone on the porch I think/about the things we washed down the sink,” goes one couplet. “Desert Pavement” will be released Jan. 26.
