I first discovered Portland native Corey Harper back in 2016, when he opened for Justin Bieber on the West Coast leg of his ā€œPurpose Tour.ā€ Strapped with a guitar, Harper managed to command and impress an arena full of die-hard beliebers. So when he returned to Portland the following year (he now lives in LA) to play a nearly sold-out show at Mississippi Studios, I decided to slide through and see what his solo concerts were all about. As I stood among a hometown crowd of his loudest fans/friends/family members, I became increasingly smitten with Harperā€™s understated vocals, blues-affected guitar solos, and the passion he brought to the songs from his On the Run EP, as well as an arsenal of stellar covers.

Harperā€™s follow-up EP Barely Put Together was released August 2 on AWAL Recordings. The project is five tracks of folk rock/Americana that illustrate his rocky but rewarding journey to self-discovery.

Throughout, the 24-year-oldā€™s influences are clear: Heā€™s like a less bluesy John Mayer. Or a more guitar-prone Justin Bieber. Or a prettier Ben Howard. From the pop-infused opening track ā€œBlindā€ (detailing the pains of a long-distance relationship) to its remorseful closer ā€œBest of Me,ā€ a lot of this (especially ā€œDonā€™t Hate Meā€) is radio-ready, and all of it is excellently recorded.

Harper ramps up the country twang on the somber ā€œDried Blood,ā€ while album highlight ā€œBetterā€ is packed with soulful guitar riffs and Harperā€™s empowering message to embrace ourselves fully, even when we donā€™t have the answers. Harper himself dubbed the song an ā€œanti-hypeman anthem,ā€ and in the chorus he sings, ā€œI donā€™t have my shit together/But I think I like it better/Knowing that I donā€™t have to hide it/Everyoneā€™s just so fair-weathered/Oh I think I like it better/Better, knowing I donā€™t have it all together.ā€

And surprisingly, just hearing him repeatedly sing ā€œbetter, I feel betterā€ in a pleasing falsetto does make me feel better about not having my shit together.

While Harperā€™s not exactly breaking the mold here, Barely Put Together is a solid effort that gives him even more ammo for his already outstanding live act.