Birds of Chicago

Insofar as we can understand rock ‘n’ roll as having formed from a mixture of various styles of American music including gospel, jazz, country western, folk, and the blues, the music made by Allison Russell and JT Nero, a.k.a. Birds of Chicago, may be as quintessential rock ‘n’ roll as it gets. To date, the duo has released three CDs — their self-titled debut in 2012; Live from Space in 2013; and their most recent, Real Midnight, in 2016 — and each contains the sound they describe on their website as “raw and soul-rich.” The title track from Real Midnight may be as representative of their musical depth as any song, and it’s well worth a listen above, followed by checking out more of their work.