William Fitzsimmons @ Martini Ranch

In case the giant beard and heavy jacket didn't tip you off, William Fitzsimmons is a singer- songwriter in the vein of Iron and Wine's Sam Beam before he embraced '70s soft rock (or Justin Vernon when he was still in the cabin, before he met Kanye). In the past,...

By Dan Gibson

April 28, 2011

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In case the giant beard and heavy jacket didn't tip you off, William Fitzsimmons is a singer- songwriter in the vein of Iron and Wine's Sam Beam before he embraced '70s soft rock (or Justin Vernon when he was still in the cabin, before he met Kanye). In the past, Fitzsimmon has written songs about wrestling with his own depression, but his new album is actually themed to mental disorders. He takes inspiration from memoirs of those who suffered from various psychological ailments. One might expect such an album would have a little more variety to it, but this one really doesn't. Fitzsimmons rarely raises his vocal above a whisper, and the instrumentation is generally twee and sweet. If that's your sort of thing, you can stare up into his beard on the stage at Martini Ranch and fantasize about what Grey's Anatomy slash-fiction scene you'll write with each song as a soundtrack. Get there early for Slow Runner, a piano-based act lauded by Paste that falls somewhere between Owl City and Ben Folds outtakes, although in the best possible way.

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