Greg Freeman

When Freeman quietly released his debut LP I Looked Out in 2022, it had no PR campaign, label, or music industry promo, but still received raves from Stereogum and Uproxx. The word-of-mouth success of that release had Freeman on a relentless tour schedule.

An itinerant lifestyle from ceaseless long drives made him think about home and his role in it. "I was trying to make an album about where I live, without specifically writing about myself and my immediate surroundings," says Freeman.

Driving around Vermont, he'd pass by the birthplaces of Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, and Ethan Allen, the Revolutionary War figure and state icon.

"I was drawn to these slightly tragic regional figures who helped me understand the culture of that area even today," he says.

Burnover borrows its title from "The Burned-Over District," a term used to describe parts of central and western New York that became hotbeds of fervent religious revival and utopian communities during the early 19th century.

"There was this period where all these apocalyptic religious movements started, along with territorial expansion," says Freeman, citing Jack Kelly's Heaven's Ditch as well as Louise Glück, Emily Dickinson, and Jim Thompson's writings as inspirations.

On the album, there's a sense that danger or revelation lurks behind every corner. " It's a livewire track, with tangible momentum and an expansive arrangement. When Freeman was touring I Looked Out, he revamped his live setup as a five-piece where he was the only guitar player.

He took that mindset to Burnover, which he recorded with Benny Yurco, drummer Zack James (Dari Bay, Robber Robber) and Freeman's live band, at Benny Yurco's Little Jamaica Recordings in Burlington.