I’ve seen over forty shows at this point in the year, and anytime anyone asks me what my favorite set was, I, without a doubt, say Impound at Wonderville.
Impound is one of those bands that, after seeing them once, you can’t get over them; it’s been a couple of months, and I still think about their performance.
Usually, when I see a band, I need to take notes about memorable things that I’m bound to forget, but not with Impound. Their performance and sound were so unique that it’s impossible to forget the feeling of when I first saw them.
I had not heard of the band before, but after going to the show and being asked to come to check them out, I was thrilled to experience something new! The best way to go about it was by not listening to them before, allowing their performance to be my first impression of them.
The lineup was made up of bands I had not heard, but all who were deeply impressive. From Goon Metal, a band where the lead singer started playing the guitar with his mouth, to Warphole, a band deeply rooted in those authentic California punk sounds with Latino and Hispanic influences. Both bands had me ready for the rest of the set. I came in with high hopes for Impound, and not only did they not disappoint, but they exceeded all of my expectations.
Impound is a new band, but not in the sense that they don’t have a grasp of their sound and image but instead are still playing with their sound and finding it. They are one of those new bands that master each genre.
They have two songs, “Say It All” and “Wasted,” with an indie rock sound from the 2000s or even 90’s British rock – almost sounding as if it was recorded in that time. How they played reminded me of The Strokes with English punk and rock influences such as Oasis or vocals of punk singers such as Stiv Bators. Their unreleased songs had a more distinctive sound than the already released ones, which felt like whiplash with every track they played. For example, “Brainrot,” my favorite song from the setlist, contained an infectious energy. As the pacing of the song picked up, the band grew louder and started playing harder. It was visible from the way they were rocking out on stage that everyone in the audience felt it.
So many of the songs they played, such as “Splash” or “Far Gone,” were just as fast and louder but included different elements of genres, such as drum lines that reminded me of the metal sound with the energy of Dave Grohl. Other songs, such as “Spotless” and “Fiends,” let go of these punk and metal sounds and were more reminiscent of garage rock and grunge, which came from the droning sound of the guitars and bass.
Despite touching many genres in each of their songs, Impound feels as if they are finding where they lie but do it in a way where each song has a compact sound while maintaining an overall sound that stays authentic to the band.
Their love and mastery of music aren’t only heard but seen. Each member poured their heart out into their performance while having the time of their life playing together. It was hard to observe one member as they were all sporadically moving.
With the play of each genre, as a listener and audience member, you can see, hear, and feel that they all love music outside of just making it. You can hear the era, genres, and artists that influence each song, which excites me to see what new sound they create. You need to keep your eyes on bands that challenge the boundaries of music, and Impound is one of these bands.
The only thing that sucks more than the fact that they only have two songs out is that they are not NYC-based, keeping me at the edge of my seat when they do post a show announcement hoping every time they’ll come back.
Written by Veronica Anaya
First two photos by @alexsanchexz on instagram
Last photo provided from the band