Wreck Loose - Long Time Listener, First Time Caller

Wreck Loose’s single “Long Time Listener, First Time Caller” is a very strong start to the next phase of the already well-established quartet’s trajectory. The track is the first single off of the band’s forthcoming album, due out in early 2017.

The song is a piano-pop masterpiece, featuring lead singer and songwriter Max Somerville’s distinctive vocals and upbeat piano style. Guitarist Nathan Zoob’s masterful playing weaves in and out to add an essential layer of complexity to the track.

“Long Time Listener, First Time Caller” is undeniably influenced by the piano-pop of the ‘70s and 80s, but only borrows some of the best traits of the genre, like the unconventional song structure, while adding modern touches, like guitar layering and quirky lyricism. The song’s story, for instance, involves a pro wrestler, werewolf and the Statue of Liberty. Quirky.

Musically, the song traverses styles as comfortably as Somerville’s voice fits in his Elton genre. The intro and outro riffs ooze epic, arena-filling rock, and other parts of the song recall soft piano ballads. The entire track is bound together by a very tight rhythm section and Somerville’s dynamic vocals.

After the breakup of Backstabbing Good People, which featured The Commonheart’s Clinton Clegg and Somerville, Wreck Loose has emerged as a focused and cohesive mainstay of the Pittsburgh music scene. “Long Time Listener, First Time Caller” could be the band’s first step on a journey beyond Pittsburgh’s hills and rivers and into the national music scene.

Wreck Loose is celebrating the release of their single alongside Pittsburgh favorite the Big Bend on Saturday at Brillobox.