Rylan Stowe

"A comfort coffin, one Stella and a leaky pen," the main ingredients found in the songwriting of Rylan Stowe, whose melancholy lyrics are juxtaposed with hook-driven movements that never surrender to the shackles of predictable structure.

Stowe's deceivingly simple sound bears a nostalgic resemblance to the Americana songwriters of decades passed. While his tunes primarily sit on an acoustic foundation, each manages to subtly invoke the musical spirit of the genre that influenced its creation.

His self-titled EP arrives this spring under the newly founded Stoweck Records, and will be available for digital purchase on iTunes and Amazon.

"This release [Rylan Stowe EP] isn't designed to pigeonhole the music into a specific genre," says Stowe. "Being a singer-songwriter doesn't mean I have to be restricted to vocals and an acoustic guitar. You have to open to every muse. It's foolish to close the door on inspiration just because you've committed to a look, sound, or any of that nonsense. Sure, there's always a certain amount of cultivation that occurs with branding yourself but letting the hat you wear dictate the notes you sing is backwards. Music isn't a uniform, it's a patched-up pair of jeans."

It only takes a short listen to hear the patches that hold Stowe's sonic fabric together. With Dylan-esque alliteration, a blend of Simon & Garfunkel-like harmonies and the acerbic melody of Nirvana, the tone conjoins to create his unique style and sound.

Not message driven enough to be folk and too Yankee to be country; the Alt-Americana music of Rylan Stowe is a murky reflection of every influence. This solo return is a familiar chapter to a battered novella that's been freshly scripted with a more refined sense of musical focus and ambition.