Ricky Montgomery with Ray Bull

Music always lures Ricky Montgomery back. He blames the internet. First a devotee of the Vine underground, and now—nearly a decade and several jobs later—an unexpected hitmaker, the Los Angeles native has spent the last few years trying to reconcile with his artist self. He recently surpassed 1 billion global streams thanks to Platinum indie-pop hits “Mr. Loverman” and “Line Without a Hook.” But those songs, written when he was a teen, have come to feel like they were by a whole other person—at least to Ricky. In 2023, we get to meet Rick, a sophomore set that comes seven years later, rich with electro-laced, emo-tinged alt-pop that spins stories about life in all its messy and mundane glory.