Singer-Songwriter Ella Williams, under the moniker Squirrel Flower, is releasing a new album Early Winter Songs for Middle America this Saturday 3/21. She was kind enough to give us a little sneak peak of the album, filled with tastefully short and dreamy songs. Early Winter Songs is a clear and deliberate portrait of Williams’ time in Iowa while attending Grinnell College, before returning to Massachusetts. It sounds damn cold there, I’ll just leave it at that. Mostly a solo electric guitar and her voice, Williams mixes in sparse field recordings that allude to the stark setting that inspired these songs. Lyrically, her style is poigniantly honest and authentic, never cluttering the meaning with strained analogies, just honest observations. It’s an impressive debut, and we’re thrilled that she’s back around Boston. Check out the haunting mostly a’capella track “I Won’t Walk Inside,” it vividly illustrates the setting that inspired these songs. You can also stream the charming tune "What Was That," or download the album here after 3/21. – Paul Jordan Talbot