IT’S EASY to see that Fred Thomas is a well-rounded songwriter; he’s done a lot of living. Even though his main job is producing and recording—the work he did with Stef Chura’s new album Messes immediately springs to mind—he has more to talk about than gear.
Thomas and I grew up in the same Michigan indie/avant-garde music scene, but we’d never spoken before this interview. I knew him from some of his bands (he was in a lot of bands), like the sprawling, lo-fi pop ensemble Saturday Looks Good to Me. Thomas spent over 10 years learning how to organize sounds, which is obvious on his solo records. His new album Changer bears hallmarks of this experience: Horns swell at the end of “Voiceover,” and a string arrangement closes “Mallwalkers.”
Changer is a great walking-around record. There’s enough energy to pump your bod, and enough soulful rumination to engage your mind. Is it clichéd to say listening is like talking to someone? The 13 tracks ebb and lull conversationally, as though they’re entering and circling back upon topics. Here Thomas’ well-orchestrated, Sonic Youth-influenced folk songs break down into immersive, Johnny Jewel-esque synthesizer instrumentals where they would’ve spread out into noise jams on his 2015 album, All Are Saved.