The indie-rock of Moke Hill is the stuff of starry skies and wide-open spaces, the product of two Detroit natives having realized some semblance of a California dream. The pair, Ben Berry and Drew Phillips, named their project after the California gold country enclave and recorded their EP in Laurel Canyon with Dash Hutton (Haim’s drummer), Chris Reynolds and bassist Tim Hutton, with whom Phillips played in the Dangerbird Records band Eulogies. Their finely honed atmospheric rock is rooted in their geographic histories: “Gold Country” to their rustic namesake; “Detroit” to their home turf; “California” to their current home and its musical legacy; and “Don’t Know Where It Started” to the emotional places in between. Gorgeous guitar textures, twinkling keyboards (and bells) and soaring choruses — here’s one for your next road trip, or the one you want to take just by slipping on your headphones.

Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/mokehill