Stream Bo Staloch's 'Too Big, Too Big' EP
(IC) 21-year-old singer and songwriter Bo Staloch releases his stunning coming-of-age EP Too Big, Too Big, out now on Capitol Records. His most sonically rich and emotionally realized work to date, the eight-song set finds the Austin-born, Nashville-based artist working in close collaboration with producer Brad Cook (Mavis Staples, Waxahatchee, Bon Iver) and a small cadre of accomplished players. The end result is a living mix of earthy alt-folk, baroque pop, and potent indie rock - all powered by Staloch's gripping vocals, evocative poetry, and old-soul energy.
Too Big, Too Big takes its name from the weight a person feels on the cusp of a new chapter of life. Oscillating between pained tenderness and effusive joy, the songs variously touch on the ecstasy and grief of young love, the complexity of evolving and dissolving friendships, and the possibility of hope in troubling times. Staloch draws on his own observations, stories of people he knows, and characters in his head as he navigates it all.
"I wrote these songs as a 20-year-old, learning so much about love and loss and friendship and brotherhood," says Staloch. "All of these growing-up events accumulated and became Too Big, Too Big, which tells about that learning experience - of what it means to be a person. I've fallen into myself a little bit more, and I feel more comfortable with who I am, more aligned with who I want to be. Making this record has been like a long therapy session. You feel so much better when you just talk about something, and we were able to spend months and months talking about growing up and all the aches and joys of it. There are no highs without lows, and the lows will teach you something. I think life is just a long, long, long balancing act."
Written and recorded over an intensive, immersive period at Cook's storied Puff City home studio in Durham, North Carolina, Too Big, Too Big feels intimate and organic. Staloch brings his vision to life with a tight-knit band that includes Megafaun multi-instrumentalist Phil Cook (keys), Twin Peaks guitarist Colin Croom, Hippo Campus guitarist Nathan Stocker, Bon Iver drummer Matt McCaughan, Mipso violinist Libby Rodenbough, and more. Brad Cook plays bass and synth as well, while others lent their gifts to the fluid sessions.
The previously unreleased "Dreams" represents the open-hearted optimism at the center of the project. Big and bright, the song opens on a full-band march as Staloch paints a series of lyrical portraits of lonely souls struggling to connect with themselves, others, or something bigger. But as the music pushes onward, so does Staloch, recapturing a sense of hope that almost seems antique: "We are, we are the kids that want to see / We are, we are the ones that still believe / Don't wake up! Wake up! Wake up! / We all need to dream."
Too Big, Too Big's past singles are testament not only to the EP's musical dynamism, but also its intuitive intimacy. Last month's slowly blooming "Hers" depicts a perilous, paradigm-shifting moment between two friends-turned-lovers. "I Won't Be There Waiting For You" is a dizzy ride through Americana and slacker-rock that tackles a fading kinship and ends in a sonic wave. "From a Different Age" leans into a loud-quiet-loud sound as Staloch cries, "I fear I'm losing all my friends / We're from a different age, we don't act the same."
Last month, Staloch made a headline-making, teary-eyed debut at the music festival he grew up going to, Austin City Limits. He also announced the 2027 Too Big, Too Big North American tour, which begins February 3 in Nashville and covers a broad swath of major cities like Atlanta, New York, Toronto, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, before wrapping up on March 27 in Houston.
Stream the EP here
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