From his early days of self releasing EPs to recording with Belle & Sebastian and writing film scores, Matt Costa has forged his own unique path through the world of indie-folk. His experiments in lo-fi, experimental sounds and cinematic storytelling both feel very rooted in his Southern California upbringing, culminating in his epic, conceptual 2018 Dangerbird debut, Santa Rosa Fangs. His follow-up album for Dangerbird is Yellow Coat, a masterpiece of heartbreak from a preternatural tunesmith, its raw emotion channeled into gently swinging, hooky love songs, most of them awash in strings and mellotron and harmonies and groove. From the insinuating acoustic riffs and lo-fi beats of “Avenal” and the snappy fatalism of “Slow” to the almost church-like fragility of “Last Love Song,” Yellow Coat is equal parts lost ‘60s AM radio hits, folk-pop beauty and dark night of the soul music.