LA’s Jess Kallen (they/them) has announced their debut album Exotherm due out June 21 on New Professor Music.

A dynamic collection of soothing strums, sparkling finger plucks and booming choruses, Kallen delivers a combination of anger and confusion, often walking the line between cynicism and hope, and yet still holding space for silliness and a soft spot for non-human critters. Bouncy lead single ‘Ink’ tells a relatable tale of how time flies by when you’re stuck in a rut. Opening with the line, “Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, the time flies when nothing changes,” the song builds to a suspenseful chorus like a wave crashing over the monotony.

Kallen’s folk-rock debut grapples with grief, rage, rebirth and love with raucous urgency and whimsical charm. “I chronically ruminate. Most days my head is like a rock tumbler. Gets pretty noisy.” Exotherm was recorded live over 2 days, serving the songs written mid-pandemic lockdown with extra urgency. Embracing subversiveness in life and lyrics, the songs pave a path of nimble metaphors interlaced with charming aphorisms—and a healthy dose of existential dread.

Exotherm:

1. A Garden Bed of Thistle Weeds
2. The Knife
3. Something Something
4. Exotherm
5. Ink
6. Cut the Line
7. Pig in a Poke
8. Mile Eleven
9. Running Shoes
10. Oolong