This week I’m going to feature some new releases that have crossed my radar over the past several weeks while I was busy diving into the catalog of The Rolling Stones.

I’m very excited to kick things off with a song by an exciting young artist who happens to be my nephew.

Almost exactly five years ago, I dedicated a week to the Daniel Gallup EP, a collection of songs by then-17-year-old Daniel Gallup. Now that young man is a college graduate with an acoustic album under his belt and a new EP on the way.

This time around, he has partnered with the talented Mack Tracy (drums) and Lucas Kohen (lead guitar, keyboards, production) to deliver his most sophisticated and catchy songs yet. Daniel sings, plays bass and keyboards, and he wrote the music and lyrics (he’s a great acoustic and electric guitarist as well, but I guess he didn’t want to show off too much on this release!).

I’m featuring the first single from the EP today, and I’ll offer up the second later this week.

‘Unbridled and True’ is, as the kids say, a vibe. It’s a wistful ode to uncertainty, a yearning anthem for a generation faced with a world that feels like it’s running on fumes.

“Do I let myself trust?” “Should I just give up?” “I don’t want to intellectualize.” “I’m just trying not to feel.” “Not trying to pick a side.” These lyrics capture the internal conversation of countless young adults (not to mention old ones) looking for meaning and purpose when those things are in short supply.

Daniel has done a beautiful job capturing that struggle and setting it to music that makes it go down easy.

[Note: The visualizer below was shot and edited by Daniel’s sister (and my niece) Madison Gallup, another talented artist worthy of your attention.]