Battleme – “Touch”

Pairs Well With…Lions, The Black Keys, scenes from Sons of Anarchy

Lions frontman Matt Drenik goes by the alias Battleme, a solo project that explores all sorts of corners of the rock spectrum.  From the spare folk ballad “Dead Man” to the bluesy rave-up “Touch”, Battleme’s debut eponymous LP makes up for it’s lack of direction with an overflow of emotions.  Drenik reminds me of Beck in that sense, especially since any genre he’s covering, it is done all-in.  Interestingly, his acoustic material gets the most play online, but Battleme is best experienced with the feedback turned up.  Interestingly, fans of Sons of Anarchy have unknowingly been exposed to Battleme, as seven songs have been featured in the series, including a heart-wrenching version of Neil Young’s “Hey Hey, My My”.