Ephphatha

"And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain." - Mark 7:34

What follows is a collection of 10 short songs on the topics of loneliness, unhealthy attachment, and deception. Centering on a dialogue between two young women named Agnes and Sheila, the album follows an oblique narrative path through various emotional states and personal quandaries. Though the insights and observations are frequently scattered and contradictory, and while offering little in the way of minute particulars regarding the conflicts at the heart of each narrator's story, the moral crux of "Ephphatha" is always clear: be open, and stay open.

Joel Henry Little is a 21-year-old singer-songwriter based in New York City. He has been self-producing original songs since the age of 12, amassing a unique and genre-defying body of work that borrows equally from folk, classical, and musical theatre traditions. Little's lyrics are at once deeply personal and often allegorical, and seek to both challenge and connect with listeners intellectually and emotionally. Influences include Joni Mitchell, Richard Dawson, and Joanna Newsom.