Alio
Fort Frances
Release Date: April 22, 2016
Label: Roadblock Records
Length: 49 minutes
Well, I did it. I moved to the mountains. After 4 years in New York City, and most of the rest of my life in the Midwest, I’m finally calling an alpine town in the Colorado Rockies my home. One of my best friends in the world recently retired from a gig writing for a popular magazine. He bought a house in the country: he’s looking into some chickens. My cycling partner just headed for LA. It’s a moving year. Or maybe, there’s something in the air that’s just making people reevaluate what’s important. The mountains are important. “These Are the Mountains Moving” has been my anthem for the past several months (some of these songs were released as an EP last year). I started thinking about a line in that song: “Everyone gets breakable.” It’s true. We all get to the point of feeling fragile, and that’s okay. But we need to see the strong things, and be part of those things in order to survive. We need to make sure we don’t actually break. David McMillin and I went to the same little college in Indiana, so I’ve been keeping track of him. Alio is such a solid album. There really aren’t any weak songs, and there are plenty of different sounds, which not all bands are able to pull off. “Building a Wall,” “Days Get Heavy,” “Anonymous,” and “Sigh of Relief” are the highlights, mainly for McMillin’s beautiful wailing voice, and the percussion. And just enough twang to make you wonder where these guys are from. They’re from wherever you are: all the places that are within your reach. Maybe it’s time to go farther—and further—knowing that you won’t break.
Drink:
New Belgium Sunshine Wheat, with a view of the Rockies, if at all possible.
