John Moen; drummer and harmony right-hand for the Decemberists, Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks, Elliott Smith, and Robert Pollard’s Boston Spaceships, as well as the former front man of Portland’s legendary Maroons; released his own album of gorgeously crafted pop-rock tunes, Revise Your Maps, on June 25, 2013 under the name Perhapst on Jealous Butcher Records.

The record kicks off with “Birds off a Wire,” the perfect introduction to Moen’s impossibly keen melodic sense. The title song tugs on the heart with a refrain that’s equal parts teary and hopeful. Revise Your Maps is a grown-up record full of all the love, want, and peacemaking that come to a husband, dad, and musician who’s been playing on stages since he was a teenager.

[audio:Willamette Valley Ballad.mp3|titles=Willamette Valley Ballad|artists=John Moen (The Decemberists)]
“Willamette Valley Ballad” by John Moen (The Decemberists)