Since the mid-'80s, Richard X. Heyman has been recording pop-rock in the styles of the '60s and ’70s; his songs suggest that had he been born 20 years earlier, he’d at least have had a half-dozen acknowledged mainstream hits before settling into life as a cult figure like Roger McGuinn, P.J. Sloan, or Alex Chilton. As things stand, Heyman wrote and performed on his albums as a one-man wunderkind who could allude to the band he loved—The Byrds—without sounding like a tribute act. There’s a freshness to Heyman’s delivery that works beyond the vintage equipment. He sings with a conviction on the hard-rocking “Compass,” which acknowledges that rock ‘n’ roll keeps everyone young. The slower “The Difference Between Us” features superbly crafted harmonies, and the crisp electric 12-string guitar on “Be the One” and “Firing Line” deserves a place in contemporary rock. So do melodies as strong as those occupying “When Denny Dropped Out of the Scene,” “Counting Up the Days," and the excellent “Somebody Has Finally Found Me.”