(Self-released, digital)
On his third release, Middle Heaven, Vermont singer-songwriter Evan Alsop has leveled up.
The local lad from the Champlain Islands debuted about eight years ago with Little Barn Songs, an Americana EP recorded in Nashville with Alsop squarely in troubadour mode. The difference between those tunes — solid folk jams all around — and the emotionally and melodically complex “While Babylon Falls” on Middle Heaven is telling.
Yes, the production helps. Alsop made the new record with friend and fellow Vermont musician Ari Abedon, and the two absolutely knock it out of the park on that front. But Alsop’s continuing evolution as a songwriter is impossible to miss. From opener and lead single “Passenger” to the glassy, gorgeous closing track, “The Anchor,” he merges roots and folk forms with indie rock and experimental aesthetics to create a record that is easily the finest of his brief career.
Alsop’s fingerpicked acoustic guitar still serves as the foundation of his songs, but the way he and Abedon decorate them — such as on the airy, synth-driven “Tiger Tiger” — elevates the album’s sonic profile. Enlisting highly regarded Burlington musicians such as guitarist Bob Wagner, bassist Josh Weinstein and drummer Corey Wilhelm certainly doesn’t hurt either.
Middle Heaven is streaming now on Spotify.
This article appears in August 19 • 2026.
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