Album of the Month - November 2025

Whenever I come across an acoustic re-imagining of an entire album from the past, I feel compelled to highlight it because it’s such a great idea. It’s like giving those songs a new life: familiar melodies resurfacing in a more intimate, often more vulnerable light. That’s exactly what happens with David Vertesi’s new acoustic take on his debut record and for me, that alone makes it worth paying attention to.

Originally released in 2010, Cardiography was the album that introduced Vertesi’s voice as a solo artist: a storyteller with an intimate, vulnerable and sincere style. Fifteen years later, he celebrates that milestone by releasing Cardiography (Acoustic 15th Anniversary Edition). Not simply a remaster, but a full reinterpretation of the entire project.

Produced by longtime collaborator Daniel Klenner, the new version strips the songs to their emotional core. The arrangements are intentionally minimal and captured in a live-feeling setting, letting Vertesi’s voice and guitar work carry most of the weight. It’s a quiet but powerful transformation, showcasing just how well these songs age when presented in a raw, unembellished form.

From my listening experience, the acoustic guitar is unquestionably the backbone of the album. Vertesi alternates between gentle strumming, rhythmic riffs and more intricate fingerstyle work. The fingerstyle moments, particularly in “All Night, All Night, All Night,” “Cardiography,” “Rossland,” and “Epilogue,” are, to me, the most evocative: intimate, delicate and full of breath. Often these parts are supported by soft piano or a subtle electric-guitar layer, adding warmth without ever distracting from the essence of the performance.

Vocally, Vertesi leans into his lower register, revealing a grounded but expressive tone that feels even more vulnerable in this acoustic setting. Hannah Georgas provides the backing vocals, giving certain passages an emotional counterpoint that fits perfectly with the album’s stripped-down aesthetic.

This acoustic anniversary edition doesn’t just revisit the songs, it reframes them, allowing their emotional layers to surface in new ways, as if they had been waiting fifteen years to be heard like this.