Budo, The Finger & the Moon (out now, self-released, budo.bandcamp.com)

Producer/musician Budo lists his current location on Facebook as: “On the Road . . . always.” It’s a lifestyle he knows well, logging years in the biz and on the tour circuit, working with the likes of Macklemore and Grieves. In fact, the 10 tracks on his new solo album—the follow-up to 2009’s excellent Bird on a Wire—are all named after cities, and he uses travel as a theme to sing about hope, sadness, and lost loves. Lyrically, “Berlin” relays the experience of feeling alone when surrounded by a group of people. “Brooklyn” finds Budo repeating “This isn’t love” over a gorgeous swirl of trumpet and spacey synths. In “Barcelona,” the artist says goodbye and frees himself from a relationship; in “Austin,” he sings about the emotionally draining effects of being away from home and wishes someone would slow him down. It makes sense then, that “Fremont” is the home base of all this wandering; there he describes coming home after a long time away, when everything you used to know now seems slightly off. The song begins with a beautiful combination of strings and brass before advisory lyrics waft in: “Rest your head/Let the moon become your guide.” Elements elsewhere on the album are expertly constructed, skill no doubt gained from years behind the decks. Trumpet lines weave seamlessly with violins and keys; vocals are strong but not overplayed, another binding feature here. Though the album isn’t “unplugged,” there’s a very organic feel to the audio quality, thanks to a good use of acoustic instruments. The Finger & The Moon is the same solid Budo production fans have come to expect, but this is a Budo we’ve never heard before—honest and exposed, inviting listeners to relive moments from his past, both good and bad.