After a few years working on other musical projects like rock band Hero Monster Zero or rap duo 8090, Andy Metz returns to his roots with Delusions. It’s his first solo release since 2011, and the first real record since 2008. The break seems to have done him well. His voice is a little different now, and the songs have more layers without getting too complex.

In the time between releases Metz got married, and some of the songs on Delusions deal with maturing, accepting love, and making sacrifices. Others deal with more general topics, like the appropriately named “Guns.” That one is definitely the oddball on the record, though not bad in any way. It falls in a weird kind of niche somewhere between Metz’s 8090 work and Everlast’s “What It’s Like.”

I really love the vocals on the sad “Santa Fe.” Laura Glyda meshes with Metz well, and pops up all over the album adding texture and a soft touch to compliment the rugged baritone at the center. In this one, both vocalists capture the feeling of being alone with someone right next to you.

I think my two favorites on Delusions offer different sides of the same issue. On “Evil” Metz sings to a potential lover that he’ll only hurt them: “I criticize your every step, I judge your every move. So darlin you better realize that I’m gonna ruin you.” Then, on “Old Man” we fast forward decades to a man whose lost his wife after a long, happy marriage: “Old man shuffles through his room in the dark, to find the photographic arts, of their wedding day 50 years ago, he falls asleep as he holds it close.”

Delusions isn’t what I would call a “fun” listen, but it is a comforting one. Metz has a knack for not over writing, putting feelings and thoughts plainly enough to be clearly understood but not so plain it’s boring. He speaks from the heart and that is far more compelling than someone who uses a bunch of ten-dollar words to say nothing at all.

Delusions can be purchased or streamed on Bandcamp. If you’re in the Chicago area, come out to Qunecher’s Saloon this Sunday night for the album release party!