THE SOIL by Sower
Thoughts on the debut EP of an indie rock project with a lot of heart.
Hi Pal,
Welcome all newcomers. Thanks for sticking around here.
SOWER is the moniker for a music project by Eric Tuffendsam and although this is a debut EP, it might be a tad unfair to see him as a new artist given his wealth of experience in creating music. Still, every new musical project is like a newborn baby and this review is written to celebrate the milestone called, THE SOIL.
Conceptually, this EP is a collection of four songs inspired by the first parable of Jesus recorded in Matthew 13. The four songs represent the four different soils mentioned there. Modern indie rock is quite broad and there are multiple ways to approach its sound depending on the stylistic origins and inspiration of the body of work. On this EP, Tuffendsam draws from the sonic pallets of emocore, zeroing in on swelling choruses and delicate energetic riffs. His voice also fits into this corner of the indie rock spectrum as he masterfully moves between his mid and high-range registers with relative ease — a common feature in bands and artists with these sounds.
As for the songs themselves, they draw inspiration from the interpretation of scripture; but are not a direct retelling of Christ’s words. Instead, SOWER uses the message behind each soil to craft a compelling story. “the path (unbelief)” is sung from the perspective of someone who expresses doubt about the fundamental foundations of the Christian faith. As he sings,
I’ve heard it all before
And it doesn’t make much sense
What does a stranger’s death have to do with sin?
I’m really not that bad
Compared with all my friends…
It’s the perfect launching pad — stylistically and lyrically — into the nature of this project. The song ends with the principal character choosing to do what is right in their own eyes. On “rocky ground (false conversion)”, we follow a character who gave their life to the Lord and seemed to be going in the right path but ultimately found that it was an emotionally driven response with emotionally charged results because there were no strong roots. It’s a tragic tale and the emo-rock sensibilities are strong on this one as we hear the words;
I’m done now
I’m leaving
I’m going back to where I came from
“thorns (false profession)” might be my favourite song on the EP from a musical standpoint because I enjoy tunes with progressive “grower” sensibilities — that start mellow and build up to a satisfying crescendo. The pop-punk inspirations are clear I love how he integrates other scriptures like Matthew 16:26 into the narrative. In the most ironic, yet beautiful, turn of events, “the good soil (true conversion)” is the most chaotic song of the project. It has the closest thing to true unclean vocals on this project and I was surprised by how good his yells are. The song paints a picture of true repentance born from a recognizing sin and the fallen state and a heart cry to Christ for deliverance from its power. Even with the seemingly erratic moments, the song plays out as a wonderful ballad and being a seven-minute tune, it has a few memorable moments. For me, the best of these comes in the outro, an excerpt from a preacher’s message that ties it all together.
As I alluded to at the beginning of this review, anyone who listens to this would know that this is not Eric Tuffendsam’s first rodeo in music, production and songwriting. This body of work has a level of refinement that can only come from experience.
Honestly, I’m blown away that he did this because he could have done anything within the emo-indie space. His choice to make something that reflects the best parts of artistic expression and deep spiritual reverence makes this one of my favourite projects of 2024 and I am committed to following the development of SOWER for years and years to come.
Genre(s): Indie Rock, Pop Punk, Emo Rock
Listen Here:
Spotify:
Connect with Sower
That’s it for today.
Catch you soon!
Feel free to leave a comment. Also, I am always open to hearing from you so feel free to send an email to me at stismavo@gmail.com