'Collapse the Wave' an Energetic Ride from IZZ
The progressive rockers' first full-length album in five years shows they're still in fine form.
Thank you for spending part of your day with Michael’s Record Collection. It’s been too long since I’ve sent you a new issue, which sucks, but it couldn’t be helped. The pace of my various projects, combined with a couple of short-but-much-needed mini vacations, have impacted my schedule in recent months. I’d like to say that I’m back to a regular schedule, but I’ve come to the realization that this hobby is going to have to take a back seat at times. I’d rather put out something I believe is worthwhile rather than simply churn out content each week, and I never want to feel like I’m shoehorning in interviews. Audio and video editing and writing are time consuming and I just haven’t had enough of it recently.
Getting back to this issue of the newsletter, I had the great pleasure of speaking with most of the band IZZ about the brand new album, Collapse the Wave. John Galgano, Laura Meade, Brian Coralian, and Paul Bremner were kind enough to jump on a Zoom call with me for almost an hour to talk about the new record, which I’ve been enjoying.
Let’s get to that story.
Progressive rockers IZZ last released a full-length album five years ago with 2019’s Don’t Panic. That album represented a milestone for the New York-based band in terms of sound and songwriting maturity, and the IZZ star was on the rise until the pandemic stalled the group’s momentum.
IZZ (now minus longtime vocalist Anmarie Byrnes, who stepped back from the band but is still participating in some live appearances) returns with a new album, Collapse the Wave, which could help the band regain that lost momentum. The new album dropped on June 11 on IZZ’s own Doone Records.
“I think after Don’t Panic we were supposed to do a lot of things. We were supposed to open for Big Big Train and we were supposed to go to Europe. And then nothing happened because of the pandemic, and I think it took a little wind out of our sails for a year so,” multi-instrumentalist and vocalist John Galgano said. “(Vocalist) Laura (Meade) and I, of course, ended up co-writing Laura’s solo album The Most Dangerous Woman in America, but for IZZ, I think it took a minute to kind of get back on the horse.”
Galgano, Meade, and bandmates Tom Galgano — John’s brother — (keyboards, vocals), Paul Bremner (guitars), Brian Coralian (electronic and acoustic drums, percussion), and Greg DiMiceli (acoustic drums, percussion) managed to build on Don’t Panic with Collapsing the Wave, a fresh, energetic, and (seemingly) effortless collection of 11 songs that will delight their existing fan base while potentially recruiting some new supporters to the IZZ cause.
IZZ has always managed to craft inventive progressive rock music — a band with two drummers that doesn’t sound too busy has to be inventive! — with strong pop sensibilities since the 1998 debut, Sliver of a Sun. More than a quarter of a century later, largely the same band — Meade and Byrnes joined prior to 2002 breakthrough album I Move, with Byrnes ultimately stepping away from recording before Collapse the Wave — has reached new levels of maturity in recent years.
“This is going to sound weird for a band that’s been doing this for as long as we have, but I think we've kind of found ourselves and our sound,” Coralian said. “I feel like Don’t Panic was this kind of turning point for us in terms of things felt a little looser and more organic. I don’t feel like we got in our own heads as much. We just kind of let the music flow, and that’s what this one kind of felt like.”
Some of the ideas for the songs on Collapse the Wave have been around for years in some form, while others were newly created in the studio during the recording process. The band recorded at Tom Galgano’s studio, with Tom producing, Joe Lambert mastering the record, and the band arranging the music. Coralian, Bremner, and both Galgano brothers contributed lyrics, with all six members getting songwriting credits for the music on at least two songs each. The Galgano brothers each have seven songwriting credits on Collapse the Wave, with John adding lyric writing on six songs and Tom contributing lyrics to five.
The album explores themes of self-realization, death of the ego, parallel realities, and other topics related to both outer and inner space, which are tied together in the interesting album artwork by Julie Morris, an artist who was asked to do an animated video for the band and ultimately was asked to design the cover art.
“There’s something of the universe there, and something of the personal there,” John Galgano said.
The overwhelming sentiment I got from discussing the album with four of the six band members who worked on the album — John Galgano, Meade, Coralian, and Bremner — was that making it was an enjoyable, collaborative process. That comes through in the music, as any seams that might exist between writing partnerships are well hidden.
The album starts out with the longest song, “We are the 3rd,” which is eight and a half minutes long. (Only one other song reaches the seven-minute mark — the title track — so there aren’t any epics on this one.) “We Are the 3rd” smacks you in the face with its energy, with keyboards and guitar taking the forefront at the start before the bass and drum groove kicks in. To me, it shares an exuberance with their instrumental “Star Evil Gnoma Su” off of I Move, only with vocals and a bit of a different musical palette. Both Galgano brothers contributed to the lyrics, while the entire band collaborated on the music. Tom Galgano and Meade share the lead vocals; John gives his bass a workout; the two drummers work as one, eight-armed being; and Bremner shows range with both delicate and more powerful guitar work.
For me, “We are the 3rd” captures both the vibe of I Move (confession: still my favorite IZZ record, but of course, it was my first) with the maturity of Don’t Panic. There is a lot going on in this song but it still has space. It never feels claustrophobic.
“So Many Voices” is a short, piano-based song less than two minutes long. Cymbal work adds some drama to the quiet, delicate first minute, and it builds into something more resounding in the second half. It contains my favorite lyrical line on the entire album:
Isn’t everyone supposed to be happy?
I think about that line — and the answer to that question — a lot, and how the easy answer is “yes,” but when two people have diametrically opposed viewpoints, how can both be truly happy? Compromise doesn’t negate happiness, but it can dampen it. I digress, but a good lyric can spark that kind of thought process in me. Tom wrote the lyric and the music for the song, although I think of it more as a connecting piece than a standalone track.
“Brace for Impact” raises the energy level back up while mixing the varied IZZ influences all together in a melange. There are hints of many things but a theft of none. There seems to be hints of ELP, King Crimson, Gentle Giant, Genesis keyboard washes, and maybe some Zappa thrown in, while the song still sounds fresh among the changing tempos. (Do I hear some Frost influence, too? If not, perhaps something else from modern prog.) John Galgano, Coralian, and Bremner wrote the music, and John and Bremner combined on the lyrics.
“Brian, Brems, and I recorded ‘Brace for Impact’ live,” John said. “So, what you hear there is the three of us playing in the studio, which we don't normally do.”
The tempo variations continue with the slower, more introspective “Deep Inside” (written by John), which showcases Meade’s considerable vocal talent. Meade takes the lead and is joined by John on harmonies. This is the best acoustic guitar track on the album, both with crystal clear chords and some intricate soloing. A fantastic keyboard solo from Tom and his additional lead vocals kick in just beyond the halfway mark as the song builds and adds layers in the back half. This one is a strong contender for my favorite song on the album.
The title track follows, opening with a piano riff that gives way to a tasty bass and guitar section with jazzy drumming from Coralian. As with many IZZ songs, more bits are added as it builds steam, including some ELP-ish keyboard bits. Bremner is a criminally under-publicized guitarist and here he shines. Vocals kick in more than two minutes into the song, featuring IZZ’s trademark harmonies.
The song was influenced by John’s fascination with quantum physics. The Galgano brothers wrote the lyrics and Bremner helped them write the music. Tom takes lead vocals around five minutes in — a part that John originally thought he should have sung, illustrating the kind of decisions that can come up in a band where there are multiple accomplished lead vocalists.
“When Tom comes in to sing the kind of middle section, I think at one point I was like, ‘I think I should sing that, because I sang the first part. I should sing that part,’” John said. “Because I had written the lyrics to that song, I thought I felt a little bit of ownership to that. But the more I listened to Tom sing, the more I realized he sounded so great on the section.”
Bremner penned the mellow “Sometimes Sublime,” with contributions from Meade. It’s a song Bremner has been sitting on for a while.
“It’s been kicking around for several years,” Bremner said. “It was possibly going to go on a solo album, but I’m very, very happy to have it on this album.”
Grounded with a pleasant guitar riff with various tasty keyboard bits and light percussion played over the top, Meade takes the lead vocal and her voice is a perfect fit for it, although the song was challenging to sing due to the sustained vocal lines. About midway through, it gets the trademark IZZ buildup, with piano and drums kicking in and Bremner’s outstanding electric guitar solo lifting the song to a breathtaking climax before resolving with a delicate finish. It’s another standout track on the record.
“There’s Hope!” is a song Coralian brought to the band. Tom helped with the lyrics and music, with DiMiceli also getting a music-writing credit. It’s five minutes of fun, bouncy prog that is the drummer’s answer to a popular trend of songs that celebrated wealth and success.
“I want to say I was getting the ideas for that in maybe the late 2010s, not quite 2020,” Coralian said. “There were a lot of pop songs that were kind of chest pounding about the mansions people owned, and the yachts, and all these pop stars talking about their wealth. And I felt like it would be a nice thing to write something about celebrating getting rid of those material things and trying to simplify your life but with the same kind of spirit. Playing into the irony of that a little bit.”
Three-part harmonies brought to the band by Tom Galgano in the verses juxtapose nicely with Meade’s smooth solo chorus vocal. John plays some standout bass riffs and there is an interesting middle section with simple chimes combining with angular guitar that provides another interesting duality in the song. Bremner shreds through a blistering solo late in the track just before an a cappella conclusion. Nothing about the above description in this paragraph sounds like it should work together in the same song, but it works anyway, because IZZ can do that.
“I think that the most challenging (song) was ‘There’s Hope!’ because that’s the song where there’s just three-part harmonies throughout the entire verses,” Meade said. “The three-part harmony was so close and specific and weird.”
Another short, connecting piece, “Brethren,” opens with nearly 30 seconds of just drums. Growling guitar/keys join in for the middle and it returns to just drumming at the end again, with the whole thing lasting just a minute, serving as a palate cleanser for the excellent final three-song act.
“Not About Me” is built on a simple, soft, repeating piano riff with a loud, stabbing guitar and Tom’s vocals over the top before the full band kicks in with the arrival of the song’s titular lyric. Tom sings some call-and-answer vocals through the middle before Meade joins in with both harmony vocals and a few lead lines.
“It’s so heavy and it’s probably my favorite song (on the album) to sing and to listen to,” Meade said.
The line Isn’t everyone supposed to be happy? returns in this song, giving Collapse the Wave a concept album feel. “Not About Me” might be the album’s most interesting song, and somewhere in the middle it gets my head bobbing every time. The song resolves softly with ethereal harmony vocals and the return of the piano riff, bringing it to a logical conclusion.
Tom’s “Soak Up the Sunlight” (John co-wrote the melodies and lyrics) is a bouncy, happy song that sounds like the love child of yacht rock and something more proggy that a band like District 97 might have come up with. He said getting the chorus melody right was a challenge for him but it eventually clicked into place.
The chorus is fun and there is a lot going on under the surface. I find new, cool sounds in this song almost every time I hear it. The keyboard solo is sublime and Bremner shreds through a solo while what sounds like sleigh bells provide an interesting backdrop. There are maracas (or some other shakers) too. It’s like they threw everything they could think of at the song and it somehow worked. “Soak Up the Sunlight” is somehow the poppiest and one of the proggiest tracks on the record at the same time — an astonishing achievement.
The album closes with “And We Will Go,” which showcases IZZ’s ability to write songs with odd time signatures that are fun to sing along with. The band’s skill at writing poppy prog songs is astounding, and this track is a perfect example. It’s a breathless closer that ends not only on a high note, but a note that makes you want to hit ‘play’ and start over from the beginning again.
The production on Collapse the Wave is perhaps the best on an IZZ record to date. Tom Galgano did a great job of recording the drums, which is an area that many self-producing independent bands can get wrong. There is plenty of space for all the instruments and vocalists, making for enjoyable headphone listening.
Longtime fans of IZZ will find plenty to enjoy on Collapse the Wave. All the interesting bits, atmospheric passages, melodic hooks, time signature changes, and fun are all in there. I’ve already used ‘energetic’ as an adjective to describe the album, but if I had to pick one word to sum up the songwriting and performances combined, it’s confident. This sounds like a band that knows it knows what it’s doing. As such, Collapse the Wave is a remarkable accomplishment.
Collapse the Wave is available digitally and on CD. John Galgano said the band would love to release it on vinyl but will wait to see what kind of reception it gets before determining if a vinyl release makes sense for the band.
To learn more about IZZ, visit izzmusic.com. To order music from the band, visit izzmusic.bandcamp.com.
Tracklist:
(All run times taken from the IZZ Bandcamp site)
We are the 3rd (8:30)
So Many Voices (1:48)
Brace for Impact (4:29)
Deep Inside (4:24)
Collapse the Wave (7:00)
Sometimes Sublime (6:19)
There’s Hope! (5:01)
Brethren (1:00)
Not About Me (5:11)
Soak Up the Sunlight (5:38)
And We Will Go (3:44)
For my full interview with four members of IZZ about Collapsing the Wave, check out the video below or download/stream Episode 134 of the Michael’s Record Collection podcast. It’s always enjoyable to talk to members of this band, who I first met 20 years ago at the first CalProg festival.
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