'Smalltown Stardust' is a spiritual, tender and ultimately joyous record that might come as a shock to those with only a passing knowledge of the artist's back catalog. On 'Smalltown Stardust', Thomas takes us on his journey to a place where past and present collide, where he can be a dreamer in love with all that he sees. References to his Brattleboro upbringing abound, but at the core of the album is Thomas's desire to commune with nature on a spiritual level. Images of the natural world, from blizzards to green mountains to cloudy days, fill the songs. 'I consider nature to be my religion', he explains, and 'Smalltown Stardust' is nothing if not a spiritual exploration.