NEWS

Steven Hefter’s 2011 album, released under the clever moniker of St. Even, was called a masterpiece twice, once by the Baltimore City Paper (“a masterpiece of dark pop songwriting”) and again by Portland, Oregon’s Willamette Week (“Spirit Animal is a masterpiece.”)

So, that’s it. That’s the news. You should listen to Hefter’s latest songs with his latest band Reforester because he’s that good.

Need more convincing? Okay, let’s get into that.

Hefter left Portland in 2017 and returned to Baltimore and his good friend and collaborator, Austin Stahl, who he has previously played with as the rhythm section of long-running Baltimore-based band Small Sur – a band that has released three albums to date and shared stages with Angel Olsen, Damien Jurado, Vetiver, Strand of Oaks, Phosphorescent, and others.

With Reforester, Hefter and Stahl (who is also the recipient of some not-faint praise, being named “Baltimore’s Best Singer-Songwriter” by the Baltimore City Paper) have rounded out the trio with Hefter’s former Challenge Club bandmate Chris Laun, who may have been mistakenly overlooked by the local press, but did have his tribute song to the Baltimore Orioles played at Camden Yards on opening day, which frankly, may be the win out of these three.

In summation, Reforester is a whole-is-greater-than-the-sum-of-its-parts scenario, because masterful songwriters flock together.

“Perpetuity,” the debut EP by Reforester, is out Aug. 14th, 2020.