Cambridge, Massachusetts-based songwriter Casey Abrams is a well-heeled traditionalist with an ear for reinvention. Raised on a diet of Leo Kottke, Hoagy Carmichael, and Ry Cooder, he has developed a style reminiscent of the finest traditional music, yet distinctive in its own right. His fresh take on American forms will leave you wondering why singer-songwriters toil over anything else.

Abrams' new Like a Mirror, released by U.S. indie label Wampus Multimedia, is reverent and contemporary, at once in touch with tradition and aware of its surroundings. Influenced by the likes of Don McLean, Spider John Koerner, and Leon Redbone, Abrams thinks for himself while he genuflects, crafting original songs on traditional themes. Like Beck and Iron & Wine, he has plenty of pulp for the presses, and translates old parchments into today's breaking news.

Abrams plays what he calls "tramp art music," melding the folkier leanings of Paul Sim...