I feel like every time I write about one Chicago band that I'm writing about the entire city. With such a long musical history and an enormous trove of new bands still hailing from the Windy City, it's hard not to think about the overall powerhouse of music Chicago is. Pool Holograph, according to the buzz and confirmed in this session, are one of the rising stars in a scene that can be terribly difficult to break through. Pool Holograph's music rubs the shine off of the bubbly psychedelic indie rock we've been fed over the past few years. Led by singer and guitar player Wyatt Grant, whose vocals are as moody as Morrissey's, the band creates an art-rock sound borne of garage rock and an affinity for pedal effects. Though the songs have pretty moments, their momentum is built on dissonance. The lyrics and chord voicings exude an ambiguity that don't give themselves up to surface level distinctions of happy or sad. There is a little bit of doom in each song, but also an introspection that rivals the depth of Joy Division. The Midwest has been crafting its own unique sounds over the last decade, resulting in an influential wave of indie rock and folk bands. Pool Holograph is tuned in to this sound, but they give it the raw edge of a hectic city, leaving no room for peaceful contemplation but plenty of room to smoke a pack of cigarettes before hopping on the subway.