Young Blood, Old Soul (on newly launched L.A. indie Cold Classic), the accurately titled debut album from emerging writer/singer/musician Danny Chaimson and the scintillating band he’s dubbed the 11th Hour, is both a booty-shaker and an eye-opener. Although Chaimson remains below the mainstream radar, he’s long been regarded as a top-tier player by his fellow players and discerning SoCal fans. His specialty is the Fender Rhodes electric piano—“I just love the sound of the instrument,” he says—although he’s adept at other keyboard instruments and guitar. Keyboard magazine noted in a feature story about Danny that “he brings an impressive variety of influences...with a unique vibe created through the diversity of his playing style…skillfully [meshing] both his technical and experimental stylings.”

The album’s sound is anchored in its deep grooves and rhythm, but Chaimson’s subject matter vividly captures the zeitgeist of the present moment. His songs dig through the debris of the American Dream, finding dysfunction, anxiety and melancholy, but also a gritty determination and an unquenchable urge to keep moving, no matter what.