A Person & a Heart

Hailing from Wisconsin, Jon Troast’s frisky sound invites comparisons with everyone from David Gray and Mason Jennings to Jason Mraz and early Jim Croce. On the folk-pop singer/songwriter’s second album A Person & A Heart, he comes across as a footloose sort of character, peering into the souls of others while earnestly strumming his acoustic six-string. On the surface, Troast’s music has a playful post-adolescent feel to it – tunes like “Heaven’s Got the Time,” “We’d Be Good for Us” and “Think I’m in Love” radiate sunny vibes. But the lyrics to “Prayer for Better Days” and “Loneliest Girl” hint that not all is peachy-keen in Troast’s world. When he chooses, he can dash off well-drawn lyric sketches of everyday families (“What We Become”) and the rituals of summertime romance (“Lake Geneva”). There’s a spiritual element to his work, evident in “Prayer for Better Days” and there's even some biting sarcasm to be found in “A Break-Up Song,” mitigating the album’s overall sweetness.