Review: towhead Releases Unique Second EP “tap water”

It’s hard to put indie-folk artist towhead, the solo project of Walker C. Price, into a box. As someone who likes to categorize music into seasons (for example, Taylor Swift’s “folklore” is summer and “evermore” is winter), towhead’s first EP “night 3” had me stumped.

There’s literally a song on the release with the word “springtime” in it, and the EP dropped in April, so I was inclined to call this a spring album, but the soft, acoustic sounds felt more like winter to me at times. Don’t ask me why, but there’s something intriguing about an artist that I can’t immediately classify; if I have to stop and think about which playlists to add their songs to instead of getting a certain vibe right away, it’s safe to say that I’m interested.

The second EP from towhead, titled “tap water”, brings more of the same season ambiguity (to my disdain), but is just as much fun to listen to. Clocking in at just under ten minutes long, Price is able to accomplish quite a bit in such a short period of time, both sonically and lyrically.

If I had to use one word to describe “night 3”, it would be “comfort.” While those same themes of comfort and feeling at home are present on “tap water”, it isn’t until later on in the tracklist.

There’s actually something a little bit unsettling about the first two tracks on this release, titled “venus” and “tear, oh.” The opening track is just over two minutes long but almost feels longer because of all of the tonal shifts.

Things speed up and slow down, changing from comforting to frantic multiple times before the track is over, the final 45 seconds transitioning perfectly into “tear, oh.” There’s an ambient ringing noise layered with Price’s guitar and vocals throughout that makes this song just the tiniest bit unnerving and creates a unique atmosphere.

This EP almost feels like it could be two releases, with the first two tracks being connected and the final two songs being companion pieces as well. The penultimate “return to dreamland” slows things back down after the minor chaos of “tear, oh”, that feeling of comfort coming back.

The closer and title track “tap water” is the perfect ending to this rollercoaster of an EP, and is probably the strongest song here lyrically. One of towhead’s biggest strengths is how much they can accomplish in such a short amount of time - this song is less than three minutes long but evokes a range of emotions.

Emotionally vulnerable lyrics and stripped-down production (Price’s Bandcamp page boasts that these songs were recorded “in [his] bedroom with [his] dad’s mic”) allow the creativity and uniqueness of this project to float to the top. As a whole, towhead’s “tap water” is a fun listen, perfect for staying up late on summer (or any other season, probably, I’m still stumped on the seasonal music thing here) nights.

The second EP from towhead, “tap water”, is available to stream wherever you listen to music. You can keep up with the project by following along on Twitter @TowheadFuntime and Instagram @MudGospel.

If you listened to the EP, be sure to let me know what you thought by tweeting me @JENSESSlON! To be the first to know when our interview with towhead is published (surprise!), you can follow the blog on Twitter @StrawbSkiesBlog, Instagram @StrawberrySkiesBlog, and Facebook @StrawberrySkiesBlog.