In Session this month: The Male Pattern

The Male Pattern, aka Will Schwartz, is one of my favourite discoveries of 2026 so the opportunity of broadcasting a session from him wasn't something I had to think twice, or even once, about.

From Queens NY, The Male Pattern's album I Was Shot In The Heart! is a concept album of sorts, following the narrator on a Travis Bickle-style emotional journey through a series of experiences life has left him increasingly ill-equipped to navigate and, as a result, an ongoing mental crisis. The album's lead single I'm A Soldier and its line 'I didn't pick this fight/This fight picked me' are emblematic of his doomed odyssey through mean streets and there's a stripped-down, raw version of it in the session.

The session also previews two other tracks - Let's Pretend and NY Football Giants Anthem - which take us beyond the album's story in terms of subject matter though thankfully not in style: just Schwartz and his guitar finding some kind of meaning in the mean streets he calls home. In their low-key, grizzled way they hint at a lot more to come from this project and I'm certainly keen to hear it.

You can hear the session in my Dandelion Radio show this month, now streaming on-demand here.

Get the album here.