Michael Penn is a HUGE favourite of mine.
In the early/mid 2000s I reached out to him and I was lucky enough to interview him. After that, every once in a while we’ll bounce bits back and forth. He’s a really lovely guy. There are musical gems littered across all his albums but MARCH and RESIGNED are stunning from start to finish. Crazy to think he’s remembered most as a one hit wonder when his work should have had far more commercial appeal, but that’s popular music for you.
His wife Aimee Mann is damn good musician too. Check out Voices Carry by her 80s band Til Tuesday. Her work on the Magnolia soundtrack was stunning too.