There’s something mystical in the air. Maybe it’s the ghostly remnants of summer nights long past, or perhaps it’s the waft of a cinnamon broom or echoes of a lost radio frequency carrying the soul of a forgotten tune.

Whatever it is, Futurebirds has captured lightening in a bottle and unleashed it with its fifth and latest studio album, Easy Company.

From note one, Easy Company doesn’t just play — it conjures. It’s as if the band has tapped into a secret stash of sound, where the past and future collide with a wingspan of Southern rock, cosmic country and secret sauce.

The opener, “Movin’ On,” is a sticky-stomp journey about leaving things behind with the knowledge that they’ll always be a part of you. In a nod to Waynesboro, Georgia’s iconic landmark, this song hits close to home — “There is a huntin’ dawg painted up high on the water tower, and he’s pointin’ somewhere — and I’m gonna find out.”

The rest of Easy Company stitches together a beautiful tapestry of songwriting through the chemistry of the Bird’s lead members with songs like “Solitaires,” “Colorados” and the title track, “Easy Company.”

This isn’t just an album — it’s a journey, and the trip is worth taking, again and again.

– Chris Rucker