Hirta is the solo project of Scottish – American multi instrumentalist Alistair Paxton, well known for his guitar work with Shilpa Ray and for touring and working in recording studios with multiple other artists. His debut album is called Soft Peaks. Soft Peaks finds solace in the natural world and comforts through an intriguing map of familiar trailheads and newly chartered terrain. It casts a windswept and lonely spell, yet retains an air of optimism across its ten warm and desolate tracks. This album was self produced and recorded in 2025 in sessions split between the Hudson Valley town of Nyack, NY and rural Bovina in the Western Catskill mountains culminating in both vinyl and digital releases under Paxton’s own imprint, Half Painted Door. Soft Peaks reveals layers of intricate acoustic fingerstyle guitar and plaintive drums under sparse and tasteful contemporary textures. A subtle and evocative blend of traditional folk voicings and indie rock charm which conjures fleeting nostalgia and offers some hopeful light in a dark time. Through songwriting that crafts propulsive repetition and embraces the power of restraint and economy, Paxton’s vocal harmonies remain unadorned and carry a poetic honesty while delivering elegiacal verses both timeless and universal. 

What He Says: “It feels appropriate to share the song Black Chimneys as a simple New Year greeting, as we all do the thing we do every year where we take stock of where we are in our lives and reset to begin another year. The song itself is a reminder to myself of what’s important and, while not necessarily written as a new year song, has the recurring line, “Lang may yer lum reek” – this is a traditional Scottish phrase that people use to toast or say farewell to friends and family around New Year. It translates as ‘long may your chimney smoke’ and symbolizes warmth, and having enough of what you need to be warm, safe and prosper, so it’s extra nice to be able to share it with you at this time. Best wishes all!” 

“My first single, Book of Ships, features the chorus “You know what’s right and what is wrong but do you know where you belong?” This hints of a recurring theme for me born and raised in Glasgow having now lived in New York State for over a decade. When you leave the country you were raised in and the dust settles, you eventually find yourself feeling more connected to your homeland than you ever did when you were there. I’ve realized there’s a red thread with my music that connects contentment with memories geographical and formative.“

His Mixtape:

Owls – Anyone Can Have A Good Time

“Inspired by and paying homage to “Make Me a Mixtape” I have included a track by a Promise Ring alumni – Owls. Owls are somewhat of an anomaly to me in that they were able to create fully cohesive and memorable songs while simultaneously sounding like everybody in the band was playing a different song entirely!  My old band played a few shows with them in the UK (would have been more if they hadn’t been stranded in Italy with a broken down van!). As I watched them play live for the first time their alchemy excited me. The songs sounded free and improvisational on record, yet the stand-in drummer (Ryan Rapsys’s of Euphone) would play all Mike Kinsella’s parts to a tee. I read that they consider their sound “stripped down to basic simple rock” but to me it’s anything but. Victor Villareal’s guitar playing is something truly special and sounds like a harp as he leaps and slides around the fretboard.  Also, a great live sounding recording by the late Steve Albini.”

The Pupils – It’s Good To Have Met You

Growing up a big fan of Fugazi and so much of the Dischord catalog,  Lungfish became a constant presence in my musical survival kit since first hearing them. Daniel Higgs’ wise mysticism coupled with Asa Osbone’s hypnotic circular guitar patterns really made me experience music in new ways and definitely influenced my own songwriting. Though this record is a departure from the full-band drive of Lungfish, it’s stripped back sound of guitar and voice brought us the most poignant and hymnal songs ever to emerge from the DC punk scene. 

Hayden Pedigo – Then It’s Gone

This is a recent discovery and though not from his current album, this is the most recent record that I bought. Sparse and evocative solo instrumental guitar pieces beautifully recorded. Simple not simple. As a guitarist first, I’m humbled by how deceptively hard it can be to write compositions for solo guitar that sound whole and complete. There’s nothing to add to this track.  

Modest Mouse – Doin’ the Cockroach

Moving from the last record I bought to the last band I saw play live…. A few weeks ago I saw Modest Mouse and Built to Spill together at the Capitol Theater in Port Chester, NY. This was a real full circle moment as the two bands always coexisted side by side for me, having seen them play together many years ago. The early Modest Mouse sound occupies such a special place in my heart and The Lonesome Crowded West is definitely one of my all time favorite records, both lyrically and musically. Genius.

Richard and Linda Thompson – Withered and Died

Now this is a sad song! Ex-Fairport Convention and folk legends in the UK, I always loved Richard Thompson’s incredible guitar playing but the songs that Linda sang are the ones that hit the hardest for me. Her voice is so pure and aches with sadness and melancholy. They had so many great songs together but this album in particular,  I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, tells so many heart wrenching tales from the fringes and has almost all of my top picks from their catalog.

Sam Prekop – Practice Twice

I first heard this record on a trip to London to visit my older brother – he had picked it up but wasn’t sold on it. I put it on and I was instantly intrigued – it sounded different and fresh to me from what I was mostly listening to- unsnared drum, upright bass, jazz voicings without being jazz, hushed vocals, muted brass arrangements. Great musicians like Jim O’Rourke on this record that I didn’t know at the time – I started playing it on repeat, and, to this day, as the record bubbles away it sounds very comforting to me like the noise of an engine room.

 

Lee Hazlewood – Cold Hard Times

There are few voices that compare to Lee Hazelwood and the title of this track says it all.  An old song for the modern day.  This track comes from Cowboy in Sweden – a record of country songs that was actually the soundtrack to a 70s TV show of the same name that he starred in.  The lyrics to this song are great and feature so many clever and wonderfully penned lines.

Duster – Ghoulish

Something a little more recent this time and this track is best served very loud. Crank it. Duster have a sound all of their own and I love that they had a second life.  I listened to this record a lot during the pandemic when times were uncertain. I’d get totally lost in the fuzz which somehow managed to capture how the inside of my brain felt. The extended outro to this song feels incredibly cathartic and incidentally is also really great for playing air guitar and/or drums

Frightened Rabbit – Heads Roll Off

Finally, this one is bittersweet and the Scottish connection is strong here. Scotland is very supportive of its homegrown talent and everyone loved FR. I was fortunate spend a little time traveling with them in Australia many years ago. I have fond memories from that trip and it still feels strange to hear Scott’s voice now. This song and video remind me of growing up and make me feel sad, grateful and overwhelmingly nostalgic. In memory of Scott, his family set up Scotland’s first youth mental health charity called Tiny Changes (which is a line taken from this very song).

Soft Peaks will be out February 6th via Half Painted Door Records. Look HERE for more information on Hirta.