Fox, Bill

Fox, Bill

Alaska

Eleventh Hour Recording Company

***"Alaska" (Side A) is a poignant folk love song about departure and hope. This recording features some eloquent guitar work by guest artist Doug Gillard who has previously contributed his skills to such artists as Nada Surf and Guided by Voices. :Alaska: is a rare Bill Fox recording in a full professional studio setting."Pale Blue Eye" (Side B) is an energized take on the Velvet Underground classic, this recording features an experimental eclectic ensemble of percussion (by brother Tommy Fox and friends) with pulsive searing acoustic guitar. Bill's version is a head on celebration of audial unconventionality.

Fox, Bill

Before I Went To Harvard

Eleventh Hour Recording Company

***Eleventh Hour Recording Co. presents a remarkable reissue that gathers together a wealth of otherwise unreleased Bill Fox material, offering listeners a deeper glimpse into the songwriter’s singular world. This compilation showcases Fox at his most versatile, moving effortlessly between intimate folk balladry and sharp-edged power pop, while also highlighting his collaborative spirit through rare tracks with The Radio Flyers.The collection features standout folk songs that exemplify Fox’s plainspoken poetry and melodic instinct, including “Standing On Nothing Now,” “Greenlove,” “On The Way,” and the aching “Chain To Your Heart.” A cover of Peter Laughner’s “Baudelaire” is reimagined with Fox’s understated delivery, while two traditional folk numbers add texture, even if they feel less essential. The real revelation, however, comes with the inclusion of three Radio Flyers tracks: “I Only Did It Cuz I Felt So Lonely,” penned by Wally Bryson is pure power-pop brilliance; Fox’s own “Alienated” brims with urgency and bite; and “Whenever I” closes their contribution with another undeniable gem.What makes this reissue so compelling is its patchwork quality. Like much of Fox’s catalog, it embraces imperfection, balancing lo-fi intimacy with flashes of studio clarity. The sequencing allows the listener to move between hushed folk confessionals and full-band energy, creating a dynamic portrait of an artist who has always resisted easy categorization. For longtime admirers, the Radio Flyers tracks alone make this a must-have; for newcomers, the folk songs provide an accessible entry point into Fox’s enduring craft.This release is more than a stopgap or curiosity—it’s a vital...

Fox, Bill

Resonance

Eleventh Hour Recording Company

***The return of Cleveland Ohio's songwriter laureate with the first LP of unreleased music in 13 years. Bill Fox fronted the power-pop band The Mice and won acclaim with solo albums Shelter From the Smoke and Transit Byzantium; his new album Resonance has won national acclaim and been featured in multiple reputable periodicals as a triumphant return to music.With his first LP since the re-issue of 2017’s Before I Went to Harvard, Bill Fox won international acclaim with 2025’s Resonance (Eleventh Hour Recording Company), a collection of never-before heard tracks that span his career. Sequenced, restored, and remastered into a cohesive statement, Resonance was hailed as “full of sharp lyrics, vivid imagery, crushing confessions, and endearing musical flourishes” (Pitchfork) with tracks such as Terminal Way being “a great example of his knack for McCartney-like pop craftsmanship” (Uproxx).Known for both his beloved solo releases Shelter From the Smoke and Transit Byzantium as much as his power-pop garage group with brother Tommy in The Mice, Fox has long been admired by fellow musicians and music fans alike who have praised his plainspoken lyricism and melodic instinct. Much like those critically heralded releases, “Resonance is uniformly excellent and presents an ideal entry point for newcomers” (Uproxx).A study in contrasts: stark acoustic confessionals sit alongside bursts of power-pop energy, Resonance’s fidelity ranges from cassette hiss to studio clarity. Songs like “Lift Your Heads,” and “Meat Factory” showcase Fox’s gift for blending social commentary with timeless melody, while “Wildflower” blooms with Guided By Voice’s Doug...

Fox, Bill

Shelter From The Smoke

Scat

Scat Records offers up a definitive edition of Bill Fox's debut solo disc, Shelter from the Smoke, back in print after more than half a decade. Originally self-released in 1997 and reissued the following year by SpinArt, both previous versions featured different tracklists. This edition includes all songs from both versions, as well as the two tracks from a scarce 1996 Scat 7-inch. This reissue also marks the first time the album has been pressed on vinyl. Fox began his musical journey in early 1980s Cleveland with The Mice, who fused punk energy with British-Invasion-style songwriting and harmonies. He infamously dissolved the group on the eve of a European tour, then dropped out of the scene altogether, with an unfinished Mice LP in the can. In the early '90s, he began a series of home recordings which revealed a growing preference for acoustically based music, and formed the basis for Shelter from the Smoke as well as the follow-up Transit Byzantium (scheduled for a similar reissue treatment next year). Shelter also includes four electric tracks recorded with Fox's short-lived band The Radio Flyers. After a 1998 tour, Fox once again dropped out of music. Now he is performing again. For how long, nobody knows. Fox is one of those rare musicians who really does not enjoy the limelight, even declining an interview with Joe Hagan of The Believer, who went so far as to fly to Cleveland in hopes of meeting him. That and his refusal to "be on the...

Fox, Bill

Transit Byzantium

Scat

These newly remastered editions of Bill Fox’s second album are the first since its 1998 release, including the first-ever vinyl pressing. Listeners will hear a wider soundstage, more detail, and improved listenability. Recorded on 4-track cassette, the fidelity belies the sophistication and nuance of the songwriting, This adept remaster by John Golden Sr helps bring definition to the intimate, at-home feel of the album. It sparkles. Very similar in feel and quality to Fox’s debut album, much of Transit Byzantium draws from the same group of recordings. It has the same feel of musical inevitability, that the songs exist beyond time itself, their eventual manifestation guaranteed by Apollo. He could’ve given them to the Everly Brothers, or the Byrds, or the Who, but instead they were channeled through an everyman from Cleveland with an aversion to the limelight. And while a traditional folk influence colors several songs, even those possess the indelible stamp of Fox’s charismatic voice and personality. Although nearly entirely acoustic and with minimal percussion, these eighteen songs cycle through a remarkable variety of textures and moods. While much has quite rightly been written about the god-tier songwriting here (“Song of a Drunken Nightingale,” “My Baby Crying,” “I’ll Give It Away” for starters), it should also be noted that this is a guitar player’s record, though more in terms of conception than flash. Lines of harmony and counterpoint wander between parts, sublime in their invention though sometimes crudely documented.