There is an ache in Izzy Heltai‘s voice. A longing. Emotion, pure and distilled through the words and chord progressions of his songs. The latest from the Northampton based songwriter comes in the form of a single off his upcoming release.
“Marching Song” begins with a lo-fi guitar feel and Izzy’s naturally breaking voice echo-ing delicately across a reluctant guitar progression. It’s the light scratch of his voice that mingles with a comforting lilt that draws you in. Light piano keys trickle in and the strum picks up as he sings “on and on / a marching song / thats sung inside my head“. An excitement and slight kick the chest feeling builds in the arrangement with the use of sparse instrumentation. That’s where the singer-songwriter really implements his craft in an impressive fashion. Crafting a feeling and a driving force with very little. Its just enough and as the vocal doubles it creates a beautiful and interesting tapestry for the rest of the tune to really build further, both in the number of parts and the evocative nature of his storied songs.
And even with the addition of horns and slightly more pieces in the puzzle, it always resolves to Heltai’s distinctive vocal. The bridge, instruments falling out, just a guitar and the voice in a hollow chamber, building again. It is what a song should do for a listener. A journey within the verses. Taking us way down, building back up again, and finally reaching the conclusion at the end. A gratifying end with that closing line “now here I go leaving…”
Heltai celebrates the release of a new 4 track EP titled “Only Yesterday” with a full band release on April 12th at Club Passim. You can get tickets HERE. He then continues the celebration with a spattering of shows across all of Massachusetts, PA and Maine. Get out and see him…and in the meanwhile give a listen or two to “Marching Song” below.