Charlie Faye spent a week sleeping on the couch at Jay Bellerose and Jen Condos’ house in Studio City, recording, cooking, and inviting musician friends into the modest home studio to sit in on a track or two. The result is a collection of soulful, emotionally raw songs, penned mostly by Faye and writing partner Will Sexton, with cameos by Greg Leisz, Mike Thompson, and Patrick Warren. Bellerose and Condos’ suggestion that they record everything live gives the songs an organic, lived-in feel, though, because of the high level of musicianship, you’d never guess this record wasn’t made over months in a fancy studio with all the bells and whistles. Bellerose, Condos, and Sexton are all listed as producers on the record. The Fleetwood Mac by way of Stax sound of the album provides a backbone for the lyrically intimate songs. The album opens with the warm hum of a Hammond organ on “Stone In The Road,” with Faye musing on the “rhythms of love.” “What’s So Special” draws you in with a 60s soul pop feel and catchy background vocals that bring to mind groups of that era. With a sly, empathetic groove and undeniable chorus, “Knocked Down” plays out as a conversation between lovers on the edge. In “Rolling Nowhere” Faye sings about a self-defeating character, who’s “sickened by the walls you’ve been brickin’ to the sky to hide from the sun.” The few tracks on the album not recorded at the house in L.A. also carry some merit. There’s an alternate version of “What’s So Special” – a little faster, a little bouncier, recorded and mixed by Dave Way. And there’s “How Long” – penned by Faye and Australian writer Dan Rosen, and recorded with rising Americana duo The Mastersons – possibly the most pop-oriented song on the record.