nicole writes about her new record:"a fine set of fools" is my 4th full record release. it is mypleasure to share these 16 songs with you. written below are some descriptions of the songs on this album."only atoms" was written after i spent a few months in europe farming and sleeping on couches."like the ocean" is a song i wrote about my childhood, adolescence, sexuality, being raised catholic, and how i came through it."ghost dance" and"oats and barley" are about food and lifecycles, which was gathered from my experience as a sheep and vegetable farmer in western pennsylvania. i wrote"practical things" after reading a book of letters from violet trefusis to vita sackville-west, who were having a loveaffair in the early 1900s."memory is a minefield" and"we are haunted" are both songs for the melancholy."crazy as you" is a rock song i wrote for the fun of it."i went to the mountain" was written about mountaintopremoval, which is a form of coal mining in appalachia wherethe entire mountain is leveled and the communities are devastated, often with many deaths and illnesses."earthworms"is a queer little song i wrote for a friend."the tree believes,""in this world," and"we could stay" are all songs about transformation- questioning, moving on."joseph brown" is a union song about the 1892 homestead strike in pittsburgh.my mother, grandfather, and great great grandfather all worked in the pittsburgh mills."for christmas" is a song about materialism. i would like to encourage everyone to make something for the holidays-carve a spoon, knit a glove, paint a picture, draw a cartoon, write a poem, save your seeds and give them out as gifts- put a little thought into your friends and family, even if theydon't give a sh*t and just want money or a new battery charger.