Hermanos Gutierrez, courtesy.

This week we bring you cinematic instrumental tracks from Hermanos Gutierrez and Small Isles, sinister-sounding Southern rock by Brother Dege, alt-pop-rock by Rosie Frater-Taylor, an eerie lullaby by Jean Ryden and a tender fingerpicked ballad by Lau Noah and Cécile McLorin.

Hermanos Gutierrez, “Blood Milk Moon” — This chill guitar song draws from Latin and Western music. The brothers weave intricate and brooding guitar lines over each other in this song reminiscent of a hallucinogenic spaghetti Western. The entirely instrumental track evokes an expansive plain dotted with saguaros. The steady sound of maracas shuffle across the landscape like rattlesnakes.

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Brother Dege, “Where The Black Flowers Grow” — Louisiana singer Brother Dege turns in this sinister-sounding Southern rock single with an undercurrent of blues. This song is the first track from his graveyard-Americana-infused album, Aurora.

“I thought of it as an ouroboros—which is a snake that eats its own tail,” said Dege (pronounced “Deej”) of the themes behind the album.

I kept this imagery in mind while listening to this track about dysfunctional relationships. The first verse immediately gives way to bold hooks that repeat for the remainder of the song. Dege’s raspy vocals bring intensity and immediacy to the repetitive lyrics. I was impressed with the off-kilter arrangement and how Brother Dege suffused each line with raw emotion. This song got under my skin and stuck in my head.

Jean Ryden, “Bittersweet” — Ryden’s entrancing voice sings, over a subdued arrangement, about what a relief it is to give in to fate. There’s this sing-song bit after the chorus that reminds you that “Destiny is bittersweet/ Don’t be sad about it.” The undertow of melancholia comes by way of the distorted cello that appears and disappears until vanishining in an abrupt ending to the song. Ryden’s words, too, are cut short when she sings, “Maybe we’ll meet again/ But in another —.” The image of the Moirai snipping the threads of fate comes to mind. Jean also co-produced the track which is from her debut, Parallel Universe, out now.

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Rosie Frater-Taylor, “Heartbeat” — The singer’s feathery jazz-inflected vocals intone over neo-soul drumming and bass lines on this alt-pop and rock tune. The result is a genre-bending sound that showcases Frater-Taylor’s appeal as a crossover artist. She explores feelings of anxiety and insecurity in an intimate manner. The slowed-down chorus is cathartic without being too heavy. It’s a fine balancing act that Frater-Taylor manages to pull off. “Heartbeat” is from her forthcoming third album, Featherweight, due in February. I can hardly wait to listen to the whole album.

Lau Noah and Cécile McLorin Salvant, “Siete Lagrimas” — In a fine duet, Catalan guitarist and composer Lau Noah and jazz vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant contemplate the bittersweet end of a love affair. The lyrics, which are in Spanish, are heartfelt and unflinching: “Si te vas mañana/ Bajo el calor de este sol tibio/ Lloraré seis lágrimas de amor/ Y una de alivio.” That translates to “If you go tomorrow/ Under the heat of this warm sun/ I’ll shed six tears of love/ And one of relief.” The fingerpicked guitar fills up the pauses without adding clutter to this already emotionally packed song.

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Small Isles, “Sure I’m Happy” — It’s another instrumental track, but one in which the vocalized punches (the “oohs and “ahhs”) sound almost like notes played by a flute. No words, just emotions: these vocables infuse this song with urgency and angst. They’re paired with a orchestral swell for a cinematic composition. Simple piano chords sprinkled throughout bring the song back down to earth. Small Isles, helmed by prolific artist and composer Jim Fairchild, just released an EP, Everything on Memory.

Sery’s pick: Honestly, it was a tie between Brother Dege’s “Where The Black Flowers Grow” and Hermanos Gutierrez’s “Blood Milk Moon.” I chose the latter because the brothers’ melodies become inextricable and because of my growing affinity for Western-sounding instrumentals.