M Ross Perkins - What's the Matter, M Ross?

On What’s the Matter, M Ross?, Dayton-based songwriter and multi-instrumentalist M Ross Perkins turns inward, crafting his most personal and reflective record yet. Written, performed, and recorded entirely by Perkins in his home studio, the album is the third in a trilogy, and perhaps the most sonically restrained and emotionally expansive of the set.

While psych-pop remains a guiding light—think Nilsson’s melodic flair and the gentle eccentricity of Jonathan Richman—the influences now stretch toward Gram Parsons and a more introspective folk-rock palette. There’s a quiet clarity to these songs, with lyrical themes that shift from the surreal toward the confessional, from outward spectacle to inner searching.

With a feel that’s part Laurel Canyon, part Big Pink, the album pairs classic warmth with subtle experimentation. What’s the Matter, M Ross? places Perkins alongside contemporaries like MJ Lenderman and Waxahatchee—not in imitation, but as a kindred spirit navigating the space between self-doubt and quiet optimism.