Album Review: T0W3RS - If All We Have Is Time

T0W3RS and their full-length album, If All We Have Is Time, feel off-kilter and unsteady, but there’s a charm to this ramshackle debut.

The 10-song, 30-minute record — which the band self-labels as “fffreaky outyyyy” on their promo — plays like a collection of knick knacks hidden away in a bedroom closet. T0W3RS stitches together elements of bedroom pop, psych rock and southern folk.

“Over & O’ver” is a fine example of the multi-genre space that the band inhabits. Muffled percussion and bleary vocals trot along until a contingent of keyboards and guitar blast through the haze.

The middle portion of If All We Have Is Time meanders from the drum machine fueled "Scout/" plays right into the upbeat, poppy start to “The Cardinal/The Finch” which mellows out into the calm, almost Fleet Foxes-esque “Big Sky.”

“Big Sky” kicks off a strong back half of the record — the only misstep being “Darla,” whose guitar riffs are a bit too cheesy. The title track is ripe for anthem status with a strong melody and relatable lyrics while “Logan” is felt immediately in the listener’s gut thanks in no small part to some great vocal performances.

“But in the end you know I’m growing,” is the final line of If All We Have Is Time. It’s a fitting line for a young band. With such a varied sound, I don’t know where T0W3RS is going, but based on this solid debut I’d bet they’ll be miles ahead from where they are now.

T0W3RS will play a CD release show on April 27 with Lonnie Walker and Coastal Vision at King's Barcade in Raleigh.