Mark Oliver Everett is one of the most intriguing songwriters of the past decade and each album seeks to uncover a different side of him. Sometimes he’ll be ambiguous on songs like “I Like Birds” while on records like The Cautionary Tales of Mark Oliver Everett, he can get extremely direct and autobiographical. The album is a stark contrast to last year’s rock-centric and upbeat Wonderful, Glorious, as Everett sings of struggles about past experiences where he lost someone and searches for answers in a disorienting world. Minimal instrumentation renders his emotion-laden voice fully exposed. “I woke up in a world I didn’t know,” he sings on “Parallels.” He eventually realizes that he should stop “defeating” himself and move past mistakes, and appears content with where he’s heading.