Valley: Water The Flowers, Pray For A Garden Album Review

Indie pop Canadian band, Valley have released their third studio album, Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden, this August 30th via Capitol Records/Universal Music Canada. Formed in 2014, the band comprises lead vocalist Rob Laska, bassist Alex Dimauro and drummer Karah James. The new album is the first one the band has released since former guitarist Mickey Brandolino decided to leave to pursue music production full-time.

Valley has been known for its happy pop-style tunes, but Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden is the band’s most personal and intimate record yet. It is an album of 12 songs that explores the navigation of life in a season of love and loss through authentic songwriting. The band worked in collaboration with COIN’s Chase Lawrence to produce the record.

The title track, Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden, kickstarts the album and was a pre-released single in June 2024. The storytelling is direct, and the metaphorical title highlights the recurring theme: self-resilience. Despite the narrator feeling like no one cares about him (“No one loves me like I do”), he will ‘water his own flowers’ and hope for the best because that is all he feels he can do (“because honestly, I’m just all out of options”). It is a song with a thick texture – the drums, bass and guitar add to the notion of finding many things to be hopeful for. The juxtaposition of the upbeat sound with the deeper lyrics feels like a message to the listener to stay positive during dark times.

Following that, the next track, A Little More, is music perfect for a summer picnic setting. Its soft acoustics and harmonious vocals, courtesy of drummer Karah James, make for easy listening. The narrator speaks a lot about music and the fact it makes him feel more love: “Melody brings me back” and “The band is back together”. These personal touches in these songs allow Valley fans to feel closer to the band and appreciate their musical and personal growth – it is a wonderful development in their journey as a band.

Growing (Apart) is a complete change in tone to the previous tracks, a direct address to someone who caused heartbreak for the narrator. The brutality and harshness of the lyrics are enough to leave you with your mouth slack open in awe: “I can’t stand you, but I can’t stand to lose you again” and “How did you get the audacity to push me away like you’re gravity?”, to name just a couple. The soft acoustics carry through to this song and the ukelele feature portrays the bittersweetness of the situation. A stand-out moment is the final chorus and bridge, a euphonous musical interlude with epic backing vocals. It feels like a release of pent-up emotions, specifically the frustrations of knowing someone is not right for you but you can’t let them go. This song is certainly one to add to the breakup playlist.

Next up is When You Know Someone, the first pre-released single in May 2024. It is a synthy, head-bopping tune and meshes well with the spring/summer seasons. It tells the feeling of betrayal from someone you thought you knew well, something that is a sad reality for most people as they make connections in life. The tackling of this difficult theme with the contradiction of deep lyrics and uplifting music works well. It shows the true peaks and troughs, or should I say ‘Valleys’, of life. Let It Rain is the band’s most recent pre-released single from the album and has been received well already. It speaks directly to the listener, reiterating the power of self-resilience through difficult times. It is an extremely soft song that starts slow and increases in tempo as it progresses, much like the progression of life. It heavily features piano notes that sound like raindrops, which is apt given the title.

Crawlspace is a complete switch-up in tone from Let It Rain, although the message remains the same. It begins with a relatively quick tempo driven by guitars and drums, and this increases as the song progresses, so much so that by the end, the urge to get up and dance is hard to fight. In this track, the narrator is offering an olive branch to the listener, as if to say, ‘I am here for you”, a likely comfort for their fans. The bridge is one line: “Nothing was the same as it was”, and is arguably the catchiest bridge of the album.

Mosquito is a clever piece of music. Behind the general sound of the acoustic guitar and soft drums, there is a low hum sounding like a mosquito buzz. In this track, we hear drummer Karah James’ lovely harmonies accompanying Rob Laska’s lead vocals. Whilst this song’s meaning may be confusing at first, it is enjoyable musically.

The eighth track is Bop Ba, a personal favourite from the album. It seems to follow from Mosquito, and the narrator sings about his worries and uncertainties about the future. “She is a tree, I’m just a leaf breathing the life of dependency” is a stand-out meaningful lyric. The song provides comfort for the listener through the wonderful blend of acoustic guitar, drums, a gentle bass and soothing vocals. This is one to stream when in need of a musical hug. I Didn’t Even Ask for This is the perfect style to follow the more sombre mood of the previous track. It features a few lyrics about the difficulties of self-discovery: “Stranger in my skin… Can you tell me who I am?” It is the perfect style to follow the more sombre mood of the previous track.

Following that, Bass Player’s Brother is next, the final pre-released single in the album. This is a brilliant song to dance to in the kitchen, with a catchy chorus and amazing instrumentation. According to the band, it is a song about cyclical love and obsession. It explores the reality and devastation of emotional attachment. It is commendable the way the band give voices to people who go through certain issues through their bouncy, drum-driven sing-along tracks. Life Goes On Without Me, feels like a step back in the narrator’s growth journey. He is feeling lost and helpless and is almost pleading for help: “desolation of destinations I don’t know” and “Isn’t it obvious?” The bridge is similar to Crawlspace in that it repeats one line, and the song gets louder and faster with drums and guitars. It seems that most songs in the album have a similar structure, which shows good consistency. Life Goes On… features orchestral swelling of violins, making it feel like the sad ending of a film. Lyrically and musically, this song is strong.

The album ends with Cocoon, a song that uses the transition of a caterpillar into a butterfly to represent the process of change. This time, violins drive the song, and it is a real change to Valley’s usual style. It is like a closing letter to the listener where they are told that “You’ll be alright”. It serves as the perfect conclusion to what is a beautiful album.

From beginning to end, Water The Flowers, Pray for a Garden tells the story of life in an intimate, yet realistic way. In comparison to previous works such as MAYBE and Lost In Translation, this is nothing like Valley has ever done, but equally, this is the band in their truest form. If this is the direction they are taking now, future works are sure to be a success.

Following this release, Valley begin its tour of North America this autumn from September to December.

Stream Water The Flowers, Pray for a Garden here:

Words: Casey Brockbank

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