You’d think that only an alternate universe could produce Bon Iver’s rebel music child, until you hear the sounds of Mesita aka James Cooley. 

Self-taught and self-released (someone please call dibs), this Colorado kid rocks smooth vocals over tight genre-fluid compositions. The Coyote, his fourth release, gathers thick orchestral harmonies, sparse folk, and electronic bit samples into a just-crazy-enough-to-work, mind-blowing trip (or mind-soothing, depending on the track). The variety within the songs is so intense, it leaves you half-dazed wondering whether you’re still listening to the same artist, let alone the same song. 

And did I mention that Cooley’s dream was to make music for video games? Yep, Mesita wins in my book. 

Stream the whole album below (or skip to my faves, listen back to back “The Coyotes” and “Everything is Burning” for different tastes).

Download a free sampler of his stuff here or from his Bandcamp page. Stay tuned for his new single coming out on November 1st.

This review was written by collaborator Victoria Montalvo, an undergraduate studying film at the University of Texas at Austin and currently studying abroad in Hong Kong.