“Called in sick so I could get to work,” lays out John R. Miller on “Nobody Has to Know Your Mind,” opening to last year’s fourth LP Heat Comes Down. The native West Virginian rolls a stony cosmic Americana, woozy and laid-back as he attempts to insulate himself from the chaotic world swirling around him with contemplative, easy-riding melodies. Miller’s songwriting slides through unexpected lines that leak insights by looking at the world a little askew, perfectly captured on the just-released EP Fireside Sessions Vol. 1, recorded around a campfire in his Tennessee backyard. – Doug Freeman