A Day with The Imperialist
The never ending trip of psychedelic vibrations hitting your skull, the vivid melodies stemming in your ears, the Imperialist are a band straight out of the South-Bay bringing their own mixture of culture and musical talents to their fan base. Their background reflecting the urban East San Jose is easily noticeable, the hard complicated bass lines, the viciously picked guitar, their music is both out of hand and unison.
Approaching the petit rehearsal room, booming from the bass lines brought shivers down my spine. I knew I was going to grow an interest towards the band’s new material. I played for the Imperialist prior to 2015-2016, I didn't realize that within one whole year a band could get so professionally alined with their sound and yet bring a grungy, gruesome tone. A two-man piece, the growing chemistry between these two bands mates is incomparable.
Genre
The band illustrates a sound influenced by indie rock and electro. Not to put them under any musical category, their sound is distinct, but their heavy influences by bands such as Radiohead, Toro y Moi, and Grizzly Bear is reflected by their easy-flowing melodic composures.
Jesus’s (Lead Vocals/Bass-Guitar/Percussion ) bass-lines are comparable to those within funk bands, thumb thumping and raw. He has the type of bass-lines that’ll make you dance unintentionally, the type of grooves that force you to two-step in your room alone.
Jeremy’s (Lead-Guitar/Keyboard/Backup Vocals) effortlessly strummed guitar licks will have you laying back and acquiring a taste for bubbly champagne. Bringing a true style dedicated to the indie sound, his guitar chords are somewhat a mixture of an old-school hard rock ambiance with the string-piking taste of post-grunge.
The mixture of these two men is what classifies them as “different” as opposed to other bands coming from the Bay Area. When they both plug in their instruments and dedicate their minds to their sounds, a new world of rock if inflicted to their listeners. Their music is very familiar to young listeners due to the fact that these two men are influenced by the same bands as many others, but their style is what separates them from other musical projects. The only way of properly justifying their musical swag is by listening to them live, recorded versions of songs through SoundCloud may be satisfying but their impression left by their live music is monumental.
Perspective of the viewer
As I grew up these past two years with the band I’ve been taught numerous values by the two musical composers. I’ve learned to never quit on yourself no matter your situation. These two guys grew up in the East-Side of San Jose where people normally get boxed in to their nine-to-five schedules and define the stereotypical image of a colored person. Smoke, drink and get comfortable with your life that’s given to you. The only difference is that both Jesus and Jeremy branched out and sacrificed their time in order to pursue a dream that they’ve both had since a young age. Instead of just settling down, working and procreating a family at a young age, the Imperialist have ignited an interesting destiny waiting to be journeyed through. A journey as experimental and brave as these two creators.
When I first met the Imperialist I was a passionate driven drummer in search for a band with a distinct style and a relatable story behind them. Being a young eighteen year old the only place I could think to search was within the Guitar-Center notifications posted by regular visitors. I scanned the notification wall and automatically was attracted to a simply written band invitation. The paper read “Jesus and Jeremy’s Indie Band, looking for a drummer. “. The font or hand style used to write the paper notification was one that spoke out to me, the imperfections within the writing style reflected one of an ambitious musician who provided for himself. It was written with a permanent marker but the attention to detail made it noticeable that both Jeremy and Jesus were serious. I text the number provided within the paper, a guy named Jesus text back with full humbleness and a load of excitement. Sending me different videos of the band preforming their latest songs, I was in awe, being a young kid barley graduating out of high-school, I only played with bands that weren't too serious, bands that always had excuses for why they couldn’t make it to band practice, but the aspiration coming from Jesus drew me in like a moth to a bright-light.
Not only did I record with the band but we also preformed in both downtown San Jose and Bakersfield. I left the band after a short year due to my desire to have an education before risking my life routes within music or creative expression. I played with the band for a short while but I was also in the backseat enjoying the ride with these two men. I always kept a third-person perspective and experienced everyday with them as a story.
How to reach the band
Visit their website at; imperialisttheband.com.
Email the band; [email protected]
Listen to them; soundcloud.com/imperialist-the
