Dan English is your favorite artist’s favorite artist. Who else could gather dozens of New York names to perform in an “acoustic guitar orchestra?” Sky Record is his first full-length in seven years, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t been hard at work in the meantime—”Across My Jaw” was written in 2019, and “Borrow” even earlier. The list of credits seems overwhelming, but a massive camp is necessary to create something this expansive and haunting. It was a family affair, too. His cousin Melody English (General Director of the Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra, with her own brilliant solo project) contributes vocals, and his dad Jon English broke out the harmonica. “Near to the Wild Heart” is a timeless piece of chamber folk, and “Need” combines Anne Carson poetry with pedal steel and noisy riffs. The world that English has built is just as impressive. All of the medieval storybook-style cover art from the rollout was handpainted, and a pair of live videos (backed by a 42-piece ensemble) are nightmarish and dreamlike all at once. Through all the strings and synths and hushed singing, it still reads as a rock record. It's as if he invented his own wall of sound.