Nathan St. John (guitar/vocals), Alex Crupi (guitar/vocals/drums) and Jacob Vasa (bass) are Impetus. The band released Hello and Good Morning which is a four-song EP. They dig into a fairly popular aesthetics that embraces clean guitars and hall reverb. The band mentions legends like The Smiths and The Cure as well as contemporary acts such Real Estate and Turnover. That’s really the center of the bullseye for their sound.
The band starts with “Judah St.” which is the arguable highlight. I was drawn to the infectious melodies which come from the vocal harmonies and lead vocal. The music itself is fairly straightforward with jangly guitars chords and a rhythm section that successfully conveys the energy the song needs. I found myself fascinated with the lyrics. They were ambiguous enough for interpretation but almost follow a narrative. The vocalist sings, “It was kinda gusty and kinda familiar / On the 25,000th day of this past December / Someday I'll know ways to forget running / All the way to work to watch the sun go backward.” “Different” draws more from a melancholy, nostalgic type of vibe. It’s also deceptively catchy with understated vocals. The chorus is money and specifically reminded me of Real Estate. “Renovator” is a little more experimental. Most of the song is very lush and ambient. In fact a little more dynamics may have benefited the first three minutes. There are slight up ticks in energy. I always appreciate when a band thinks outside of the box as they do with the last minute or so in the song. The band closes with “From the Start” and the vibe felt a little more shoegaze to me than dream pop. They start to float in to My Bloody Valentine territory with cerebral sensibilties and a more emotionally heavy appeal. I think at some point the band may have to make a conscious decision as to whether they want to go for something more emotionally heavy or a little more loose, carefree and fun. It seems like those two sides may be battling a little bit. The recording leans more towards a good sounding demo. I think a top notch mastering engineer could work wonders in this case but would love to hear a studio recording for the band at some point. The band has a great deal of talent. They certainly know how to write a song and I think with a little more tweaking on their foundation they should be ready to roll. I’m looking forward to hearing their next step.
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