“You’ve been just about everywhere, except for where you oughta be,” sings Trey Johnson, lead singer and principle songwriter of Dallas-based Sorta, on their second full-length offering, Little Bay. The line just about sums up the record, a restless romp through anxious, country-tinged alt.rock that evokes the solitary discontent of Exile on Main Street by way of Wilco’s AM. The album builds slowly, from the acoustic opener “Sink or Swim,” to the urgent, open-throated anthem “Tidal Wave.” Wedged betwixt the two are a batch of tunes as well-crafted as any you’re likely to encounter this year—the baleful drone of “Fallinlove,” the bouncy Travis-picking of “To Jenny,” and the tense jangle of “Christmas Day,” among other choice tracks. Johnson’s weathered vocals are those of a man who knows he can’t go home again; and if that meant he’d stop writing songs like these, here’s hoping he never does.