Starfire on the Mountain’s a little peculiar. I don’t mean that he’s peculiar as a person (per se.) His music is peculiar in that it achieves in what it sets out to do. Starfire’s got an uncanny knack for creating music that feels well-worn and homey but in fact has a psychedelic edge to it if you peek behind the curtains — like the Twin Peaks of indie folk. Starfire’s elaborate persona is carefully woven throughout the tracks on this album, culminating in “The Owl” in which the multi-instrumentalist cinches the imagery of mountains, flames, and stars peppered throughout the album.
What’s most remarkable about this debut album is the sense of control and confidence that exudes through the songs — played and recorded entirely by Starfire himself. They’re brash, they’re funny, they’re contemplative. The kickoff track, “Billy Creek,” is a fast-talking ramble that sets the stage for the rest of the album: amid half-platitudes, Starfire doubles back on himself, upsetting your expectations and throwing in a lyrical surprise or two. So this isn’t psychedelic in the sense that the music is itself experimental or spacey: instead, through his careful playing and masterful lyrics, Starfire on the Mountain exposes the wonder and mystery all around us.
Starfire on the Mountain — Official, Facebook, Amazon, iTunes