The Four Roses #[nn]

Set against the lush, moss-draped backdrop of what looks like the American Deep South, this Futuropolis album from Jano & Baru places a lanky, cartoon-styled young man front and center — guitar case in hand, wide-eyed and a little off-balance, as if he's just arrived somewhere he wasn't entirely expecting. The richly painted neighborhood behind him, all weathered wooden houses and lazy hanging trees, creates a vivid contrast between the cartoonish protagonist and his photorealistic surroundings — a visual tension that feels entirely deliberate. It's a confident, atmospheric 2015 collaboration that announces its bluesy, road-trip sensibility right there on the cover.