100 Acre Wood

Winston Hightower — 2026

“Lo fi looseness and restless guitars give these songs just enough edge without losing the hooks.”

Winston Hightower has been making music now for over a decade, and it all has led to his engaging new album 100 Acre Wood. The Columbus native spent years as a touring sideman in hardcore circles, a prolific home recorder whose catalog stretched across over 100 songs on tape before most people outside the Midwest ever heard his name. This record, his second proper LP, is a kaleidoscope of ideas and styles that is loose and lived in but stands out with its simplicity. It plays like a personal sketchbook, moving all over musically and vocally, but that lo fi, rough around the edges delivery really worked for me. It also became one of those records where I hear something new every time I spin it.

I am not really sure if scuffed American lo fi is even a thing. Maybe it was or maybe it has always been, but 100 Acre Wood could be used for its definition. We can all go back to Guided By Voices and early Sebadoh, and both of those bands had great ideas in small bursts, but what made them great was how the pieces fit together into a solid LP. Hightower has that same quality as he uses rawness with guitars that bend and twist without resolution, often landing on keys that feel slightly wrong until they suddenly feel completely right. His vocals run double tracked in places and create another layer to his songs that still makes them feel bigger. The album breathes the way a well played cassette does, with that sort of hiss in the background. His hooks do not arrive in obvious ways either. They sneak in through odd vocal phrasing or a repeated line that suddenly clicks on the third pass.

Hightower has always worked in this DIY lane, but 100 Acre Wood weirdly seems more focused than last year’s Winston Hytwr. Earlier material felt like ideas flooded together and jumped styles without cohesion. Here, even with the glorious imperfections intact, the songs connect more clearly. The melodies land quicker, and the pacing gives the record an indie edge that makes you want to hear it again.

Hightower really hits on so many artists that make sense, like Times New Viking and early Guided By Voices as givens. “Virtual Signaling” has a Pixies riff running underneath that I could imagine Frank Black singing over. The upbeat and nonchalant Moldy Peaches vibe is happening, while early Modest Mouse would not be missing the mark either, with a delivery style and sound very similar to Isaac Brock. That is more noticeable on certain tracks, while his slightly nasal earnestness also mirrors Gus Englehorn and Daniel Johnston.

“Selfish Soother” kicks off with a guitar that is constantly slipping out of place, but the vocal line pulls it back in, creating a push and pull that makes the song stick. It creates an intensity that is not really there but drives you wanting more volume. “On Our Own Time” leans more into the post punk side of his range. The guitar tone is wiry and direct, while his layered vocal stays out front. The song is over after just 1:26. “Lay Low” is the mood shift the album needs at its midpoint. It carries a slower, almost drowsy quality, with a guitar part that meanders in a way that feels intentional and patient. “Beyond The Thicket” has this great post punk guitar battle going on behind Hightower’s echoed spoken word in the front. It really does seem like there are two different tracks here, but they blend seamlessly to make one of the best songs on the album.

Hightower writes about the ordinary friction of being a person. This gap between the life you imagined and the one you are actually living is easy to connect with, especially because he does not dress any of this up. Sometimes directness is harder to absorb, but I more feel Hightower just gives it to us straight, and 100 Acre Wood is better for it.

100 Acre Wood is the record that should break Winston Hightower out past the underground faithful who have followed his tape work for years. The lo fi approach does not create any barriers here, especially when Hightower switches up tempos, but I do encourage several listens because the album takes an adjustment listen to absorb his style. Give it that time, and the songs start to open up in ways that are hard to shake. This is the kind of record that starts as a quiet find and ends up staying with you.