face of ancient gallery Dives Deeper Into Exploratory Folk On Sparse & Poetic Sophomore Effort ‘Like Kites’ (ALBUM REVIEW)

Recently, rock music has seen its fair share of band members launching into wildly successful solo careers. Wednesday’s MJ Lenderman has become a beloved folk-rock figure, Geese’s Cameron Winter’s 2024 debut paraded his vocal acrobatics straight into the hearts of critics and fans alike, and King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard drummer, CAVS, is building a jazz discography on his own. These are not the first instances of musicians diving into well-received solo material, but there seems to be a particular draw to this new generation of rock innovators. That call for the solo realm lit up the phone of Jeremy Mock, the singer/songwriter/guitarist and a member of bloodsports, in 2024.

 Before the band even released their debut, Mock released the self-titled debut of his solo project, face of ancient gallery. The eight-song debut played like lost demos from a forgotten time, sparse transmissions of traditional folk music for a world that no longer exists. The first sightings of this project were a complete pivot from Mock’s contributions to bloodsports, but that was the intention. The ambient experimentation of face of ancient gallery’s sound was designed as a vehicle for Mock’s songwriting and left-field guitar expertise, a playground for his lofty visions to swing from. After two years and the successful release of bloodsports’ 2025 LP, Mock returns to face of ancient gallery with Like Kites, the anticipated sophomore release from the mind of an exhilarating, refreshing musician. The atmospheric eight-song outing finds Mock surrendering himself to a sonic terrain of his own creation, another vantage point on the safe space the artist built for his most daring ideas. Mock’s solo material is a world to get lost in, and that’s the exact result of listening to Like Kites. 

You may notice a satisfying, aesthetic fog begin to form around your feet as you press the play button. Mock’s uncompromising, ethereal guitar playing throughout Like Kites is a captivating exercise on the limits of ambiance, as his gentle plucks dot these emotionally vulnerable pieces of exploratory folk music. There is a warm cohesion to this tracklist that is inviting yet raw, spacious yet detailed, and colorfully so, culminating in a quick yet intoxicating listen. The instrumental number, “Columbine Street,” dazzles with splashes of acoustic drama, while moments like “Yellow Hat,” with its cascading timbres and subtly searing strings, and twinkling “Wet the bed” introduce even more complex layers to Mock’s riffs. Production-wise, Like Kites successfully toys with expectations and delivers spellbinding textures that stick to the sides of your brain, but Mock’s songwriting dances with these arrangements with cinematic flair. 

The lyrics of Like Kites are just as beautifully complex as the guitars that aid in comprehending the complexity of these poems. Mock’s songwriting can sound like imaginative mazes, lined with emotional imagery and deep reflection, and can sometimes feel as if these visions were strung together with rope only the writer can see. While these lyrics can feel disconnected, every listen to these songs unearths a new dimension of the words, tying the LP together beautifully. The desperation of “Rings,” the storytelling of “House Show,” and the palpable emotions of “Yellow Hats” grow more heartfelt over time, as if Mock penned these songs while hovering above life, distilling his observations into breathy exasperation. 

Despite its unassuming disposition, Like Kites is far from a one-dimensional listen. Mock’s sophomore effort as face of ancient gallery is a stunning exploration of the artist’s individuality, as he stretches every moment of this short LP to imaginative lengths, creating a monument to the artist’s musical risks that pay off tremendously.