When Lightning Strikes the River is a narrative suite of 14 songs about the feminized queer experience, romance, partnership, friendship, mental health, depression, grief, redemption, spirituality, and ultimately, love. The evocative lyrics are set to lush harmonies, organically shifting time signatures and intricate ostinatos, drawing on influences from jazz, pop, folk, and Brazilian traditional and contemporary styles of music.

The pieces are presented within a narrative arc, from the first spark of a relationship, through passion, partnership, heartbreak, the support of community to rebuild to a place of self-love and of self-knowledge. The music and its theatrical setting are both a result and a reflection of the creative collaboration between poet Eva Tihanyi and musician Carlie Howell.