Toronto-based singer-songwriter Allan Rayman comes through with a record that incorporates various, contrasting stylistic elements to form a singular identity that is his own on his latest studio album, Christian. Combining guitar tones that compliment his gruff yet sweet sounding voice, Rayman’s fourth full-length release results in a sound that is fitting for the emotion he spends much of the record speaking on – love.

Atop the aforementioned lush guitar production that is also accompanied by insanely groovy basslines and drumbeats, Rayman sings, in quite a raw fashion mind you, about his intense experiences with the ever-daunting emotion of love. The album also includes a couple thematic additions such as the Track 3 skit, “Industry” and the vocal snippet that kicks off Track 6 “Bunny,” further emphasizing his sentiments on the record. While the record comes out the gate with one bop after another, it is debatable that the latter half of the album doesn’t connect as much as the first. That said, this is of course an opinion subject to preference, and by no means indicates the overall quality of the record. In fact, Christian is an album that is an enticing listen from front to back and a must-hear for music listeners who are particularly eager for music that defies genre and is imbued with emotion.