Andrew Ripp

Palatine, Ill., singer-songwriter Andrew Ripp’s debut Fifty Miles to Chicago is a tale in two parts. While the album’s first half treads closely to the acoustic musings of Jason Mraz and Joshua Radin, increasingly adventurous folk and funk influences creep into the disc’s B side, lending the record unexpected eclecticism. Earnestness is the glue that binds the album, defining songs like “On My Way,” a bittersweet rumination on long-distance relationships accented by mournful, twanging guitars.