You've got to love when an artist's quality and artistry match the prolific output. Following his fantastic summer EP, The Soil, Eric Tuffendsam and his project Sower are already back at it with more new music. The Seed is another concept EP that blends Tuffendsam's passion for the Gospel with an incredible sense of songwriting and musicianship.

While The Soil explored one of Jesus' parables, The Seed tells the redemption story, and it starts all the way back at the beginning. The song titles act like chapter names in a 4-song story arc, starting with God creating the universe in perfect peace and unity in the aptly-titled "Creation." Pulling some text from Psalm 19, "Creation" doubles as an intro and a My Epic-ish worship song ("All of creation proclaims His glory / the streams and the mountains are calling out to Him"). It's a slower track that builds up speed before launching into an alt rock banger in "Fall." Here, Sower tells the story of Adam and Eve in the garden, culminating in their eventual disobedience and fall from God's grace. The song has a great alternative rock sound and some singable melodies; it's tempting to put it on a playlist for later, though the hopeless-sounding "Who can save us? Who can save us?" at the end doesn't really work very well without the following songs for context. (I might do it anyway.)

The answer to that question doesn't take long to come. Jumping straight into the New Testament, "Redemption" covers the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Christ. The fabulous rock sound continues on, sounding a lot more celebratory as the song plainly lays out the Gospel. The lyrics aren't necessarily poetic, trading in extravagant lyricism for a straight-to-the-point retelling of the story. This sort of songwriting doesn't always work, but Sower nails it here. "Restoration" then moves the listener straight to the end with the eventual second coming of Jesus. The music is amped up right from the start, creating a huge atmosphere that almost sounds like a less-metal version of Sleeping Giant's "Tithemi." The song's 8-minute runtime does also cover melodic post-rock and alternative, and even has a lovely orchestral section. Meanwhile, the lyrics call back to the Psalm 19-inspired lines from "Creation," pointing toward the author of our faith finishing what He began.

2024 has actually been ripe with new artists and great debut albums. Sower is easily one of my favorites of that list. The Seed continues to show that Tuffendsam is a gifted singer and musician, whose love for the Lord is evident in every moment of his music. If this is the first you've heard of Sower, do yourself a favor and listen to both EPs. Fans of Facedown post-hardcore and early '00s Tooth & Nail will no doubt be drawn in by what they hear.

- Review date: 11/16/24, written by Scott Fryberger of Jesusfreakhideout.com

 Record Label: None
 Album length: 4 tracks: 22 minutes, 33 seconds
 Street Date: November 8, 2024

1. CREATION (4:39)
2. FALL (4:59)
3. REDEMPTION (4:47)
4. RESTORATION (8:06)