After the release of their debut album I Want to Live My Life in 2021, Iowa’s emo trio Stars Hollow left fans with the following message: “It’s not that you won’t be happy again, you just won’t be the same as you were before”. Such a sentiment was fittingly emo and moving, set the tone for future releases, and reminded me of that old proverb that says “April showers bring May flowers”, meaning that a period of sadness or discomfort can serve as the foundation for an upcoming time of joy. With the release of their newest EP In the Flower Bed, Iowa’s Stars Hollow has set the tone for a possibly emotionally draining yet hopeful spring.

In the Flower Bed is the third EP from the band and, arguably, their best yet. The EP was released via Acrobat Unstable Records and contains five new songs from the band, including previous singles “Acne Scars” and “Sickening”, which captivated both long-time and new fans and garnered high anticipation for the full release. Now, with such an impressive release, we can only hope that another three years won’t have to pass for us to hear new music from the band. Hopefully, a second album will come to fruition sooner rather than later. But for now, we can indulge in Stars Hollow’s impressive, yet criminally too short, newest EP.

The opening track “The Clothes I’ll Be Buried In” starts as a mellow and bouncy introduction, but aggressive and emotional vocals are quickly brought in by Tyler Stodghill and maintained through the delivery of heartfelt lyrics such as “I love myself like an absent father, but that’s better than nothing.” Even for being just over a minute in length, the band knows how to hook listeners in quickly and efficiently with their multi-faceted musical talents. The song transitions into “Thorns”, in which we are reminded of Stodghill’s singing abilities and how his lyricism is consistently deep-cut, regardless of his vocal delivery. In this track, we are met with flanged guitars and precise drumming, all of which create a dream-like yet attention-demanding tone reminiscent of “the ghost that haunts us all”.

“Acne Scars” was the first single to be released from this EP and established a certain softness that was to be expected. The track opens with an acoustic guitar under soft vocals, blending aggressive background vocals throughout the track. Once again, the band showcases their ability to balance breakdowns with gentle interludes, balancing finger pointing with head swaying and a hand on the heart, for the following track is quite the opposite of “Acne Scars”. “Sickening” was the second single from this release and is quite different from the rest of the lineup. This song is the heaviest on the EP, short and sweet, yet opening and ending with a heavy riff and vocals while maintaining a classic, twinkly, math-rock emo sound in the interim. “In the Flower Bed” is both the title and closing track of the EP and provides a mellow and uplifting end to the cycle. With lyrics such as “I want to kill who I was back then…I’m spitting on your flowers to make them grow”, the band leans into the belief of hope for growth, as painful and ugly as it may be.

Within In the Flower Bed, the band holds tight to the sound that is Stars Hollow all while showcasing their musical range and including a couple of curveballs. Nearing a decade of existence, the band has proven themselves with every release, constantly improving in technique, dynamics, and sound. With such a great trajectory and track record so far, one can only imagine what the next ten years will hold for the band. Hopefully, further deserved success and notoriety,  and, of course, more music is in the cards.

For fans in the area, Stars Hollow is playing an EP release show to celebrate In the Flower Bed on April 19th at Teehee’s Comedy Club in Des Moines, Iowa. The band will be joined by special guests Sundance, Tiny Voices, Endswell, and Stateparks. Tickets are on sale now at starshollowia.com, and I suggest getting your tickets soon. As for the rest of us non-Iowans, we can only sit and wait hoping that the band makes their way to us soon. But in the meantime, you can support the band by streaming and sharing In the Flower Bed and grabbing some merch from their Spring drop.

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