Greg Freeman finds emotional catharsis and modern resonance in the eccentric ugliness of the past. His songs are rooted in a vivid sense of place, propelled by urgent delivery and evocative lyricism that mine history for tales of violence, loss, and revelation.

On his sophomore LP Burnover—out August 22 via Canvasback Music/Transgressive Records—the Maryland-born, Burlington, Vermont–based artist uses the complex backdrop of the Northeast to explore grief, alienation, and the clarity that comes from opening yourself to love. Explosive, unsettling, and undeniably human, the album’s ten tracks fuse energetic indie rock with a rambling twang, marking Freeman’s most adventurous and personal work yet.

Freeman’s debut LP I Looked Out (2022) arrived without a label, PR, or promo—but still earned praise from Stereogum and Uproxx, leading to a relentless touring schedule that had him reflecting on home and identity. “I was trying to make an album about where I live, without specifically writing about myself,” he says. Driving through Vermont, he passed the birthplaces of Joseph Smith and Ethan Allen—“slightly tragic regional figures who helped me understand the culture of this area even today.”

The title Burnover references the “Burned-Over District,” parts of 19th-century New York known for fervent religious revival and utopian movements. “There was this period where all these psychedelic, religious movements coincided with territorial expansion,” Freeman says, citing Heaven’s Ditch by Jack Kelly alongside Louise Glück, Grace Paley, Jim Thompson, and Emily Dickinson as inspirations.

Recorded with Benny Yurco, drummer Zack James (Dari Bay, Robber Robber), and Freeman’s live band at Yurco’s Little Jamaica Recordings, Burnover channels the live-wire energy of his touring setup. Songs like “Gone (Can Mean a Lot of Things)” crackle with intensity, while “Curtain” transforms from a meandering jam into something alive when pianist Sam Atallah adds tack piano. “As soon as Sam laid it down, we heard the song for what it was,” Freeman says.

Produced by Freeman and Yurco and mixed by Adrian Olsen, Burnover balances propulsive noise with inviting beauty. On the heartfelt “Gallic Shrug,” Freeman sings, “You’re looking to the sky for love and all you get is a Gallic Shrug”—a line that captures the record’s spirit: raw, searching, and steeped in the contradictions of place and self.

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