Grandson of celebrated composer John Williams, Los Angeles-based artist and multi-instrumentalist Lionel Williams (aka Vinyl Williams) certainly had the genealogy in place to become a sonic designer. But with his debut record Lemniscate, the 22-year-old gets way more otherworldly than the elder Williams did when he scored Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

Written and performed entirely by Williams, Lemniscate sounds like an extension of the collage art he’s gotten worldwide attention for. Blending ambient shoegaze, space pop, and fierce psychedelia, Williams brings tones of chaos and desperation into a beautifully presented and mystically charged work.

Though Williams delivers something all his own, a lo-fi version of Radiohead comes to mind as an influence for the guitar work in songs such as “Follow in Your Dreams” and “Object of the Source.” “Inner Space” and “Open Your Mind,” on the other hand, evoke thoughts of the atmospheric 6-string style of Archer Prewitt. Paired up with Williams’ haunting vocals and the lush layers of beats, bass, and synths, Lemniscate is a nicely executed collection of spells. —Rich Osweiler
Must-hear track: “Harmonious Change”