David Duchovny released a mediocre dad-rock album

The truth about how to have a career in music is out there — and it probably has something to do with being famous enough to get publicity in the first place.

Yes, X-Files star David Duchovny released his debut album, Hell or Highwater, on ThinkSay Records today, and it's streaming on Spotify.

So what does Fox Mulder's music sound like? On first listen, it struck me as agreeable, '70s-style dad rock that's clearly inspired by artists like Bob Dylan and Wilco. Duchovny's voice also sounds a bit like Tom Petty. Here's the title track:

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Duchovny has said the album is an opportunity for him to blend poetry and music, and while there is some competent guitar playing on the album, Duchovny's lyrics are more English lit major than gifted songwriter: (See this line from "Stars": "When the fire is dead / how can it be that the sparks still fly? / The ghost you left in my bed / the stars you stole from my empty sky").

While some aspiring rock stars toil away in dingy pubs for years before selling out a show in New York City, Duchovny is at least open about the fact that his musical aspirations are an amusing side project (he only learned the guitar a few years ago).

"Making this record is a dream come true — but I never had this dream," Duchovny said. Sounds about right, considering his Twitter bio simply reads "Dilettante."