Indie rock is a peculiar style. Fusing a grassroots, individualistic attitude lends itself naturally to finding new sounds and ways they interact with one another. For Petty Crimes, this idea is core to their self-proclaimed “genre fluid” style and their latest release, “Every Moment All At Once” proves that their musical alchemy can be quite magic. The first track, “Still Waiting,” is one that looks to hook you from the top.
The crying strings of the guitar blend well with the piano keys to lure the listener in before they lay the percussion on and bring the pulse into the track. The soft, dreamy aesthetic of vocalist Dan Irving fits the melody like a glove and is instantly captivating. When the track hits the 2:16 mark, the beat picks up and the guitars lean into the groove and makes you want to get up and dance, making this solo one of the most memorable parts of the track. The chorus is an absolute earworm that is a blast to sing along to, with the finale it sets up at the end being an absolute triumph. “Still Waiting” explodes from the top of the album and instantly makes an excellent first impression that you’ll want to put on repeat.
“New Years” follows it up and hits the ground running. Lead vocalist Em Edgerton brings a certain sense of tension to the intro with the lines “There she stood, at the corner of just and never would. Her right hand’s up and her life is draining, washed out on the road.” While the instrumentals rock hard, with wailing guitars and slamming drums that explode with attitude, they can’t hold back the raw emotion in the lyrics. Lines such as “Stranger so kind, at arm’s length and she keeps them blind. Reaching for her memory of a softer side of life, shattered on that night” are powerful and brings the heavy instrumental aesthetic into perfect focus. Like the track before it, “New Years” is another track you won’t want to skip.
The trippy, reverb-laced vocals of “Q&A” create a surreal and spacey intro that flows into a powerful drum beat that brings the energy to the track. The slow ramp up of the groovy rock kicks into overdrive right before the 3-minute mark where the track explodes. This build-up is illustrated in the lyrics, with lines such as “the gate is close to breaking and I don’t think I can hold on much longer. Maybe a taste for the aching, you’re the easy way out” leading into others that lead the listener through the song such as “I come to you ever night to forget the pain. I have more love than I could ever have for myself and I’ve got so much to share for those who will take.” Moments such as that combined with the retro-style groovy, high-energy rock instrumentals make “Q&A” a stand-out track that you’ll want on your playlist.
“Madeline” is another stand-out fronted by Em Edgerton whose light taps of percussion lures the listener into the mellow, stringy guitar. The bass trails underneath, creating a contemplative and emotional aesthetic for the track. It brings the power out of the soft vocals of Edgerton, whose power comes out during the memorable chorus, especially around the 1:50 mark where the vocals dance with the distorted guitar riffs to create a gripping effect before the track descends into its spacey outro. “Madeline” is a track that stands out on the album as one of the softer beats on a high-energy release with a catchy chorus and a more contemplative and emotional tone.
“Every Moment All At Once” is a triumph. Each track has a magnetic quality that makes you want to hit the repeat button whenever one finishes. They each have their own personality and while they unite under the genre of rock, the experiments heard in tracks such as “Q&A” and “Voyager I&II” mix beautifully with their indie rock roots, with other tracks such as “Madeline” and “Knowing Silence” offering fantastic sounds for the indie rock devout. “Every Moment All At Once” is an album that no indie rock fan will want to miss and one everyone should listen to at least once.
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